The Construction Industry faces a unique set of challenges.  From the difficulty of hiring skilled workers or managing safety compliance. Each challenge greatly affects the bottom line. For smaller companies, these challenges are amplified and can impact your business negatively.

HR is seen more as a “luxury” than a necessity in small businesses. However, working with an HR professional will greatly contribute to your company’s ongoing success. Here are three of the top challenges the construction industry face and how to overcome them.

 

Hiring skilled employees

Construction is attracting fewer people. Why? Many cite dangerous work and safety concerns. With the ever-increasing costs of products and therefore projects, skilled workers are offered lower wages which in turn attracts fewer people.  The job vacancy rate in construction increased to 46.7% in 2021. This is by far the biggest challenge faced by the Construction Industry. Long gone are the days when you could advertise an open job and successfully hire from the resumes you receive.  

BLANKSLATE Partners can provide you with the talent that you need. We have well-honed methods of proactive recruitment allowing you to make the connections needed to get the project completed on time and on budget.

 

Retention of skilled workers

How to keep this person with your company is your next challenge. Construction sees the highest turnover rate when compared to other industries. It is hard losing skilled workers in the middle of projects and a big concern.  HR can work with you to develop retention strategies, create employee handbooks, write policies, and develop incentive plans. This will keep them working through the project and wanting to stay with the company for future projects.

 

Safety and Compliance

Employees want to know that their safety is top of mind in any industry they work in. Construction even more so.  Statistics show that new-hire construction workers have more frequent work-related injuries than any other employee.  To avoid these injuries, an HR professional can provide several solutions such as creating ongoing training policies including regular performance reviews.  A sound training policy can help reduce skills gaps, improve risk management and help with retention. Creating a HR Management plan is another item for consideration. It will outline what the company needs to do in case of emergencies and what actions the business has to undertake. Insufficient planning leads to incompetence in other areas of construction work.