The infrastructure bill and our labor shortage crisis

BY TODD HITT, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR, THE HILL

http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/labor/382757-the-infrastructure-bill-and-our-labor-shortage-crisis

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The start of the next hurricane season is coming quickly. For those of us in the Atlantic basin, it’s less than two months away. The nation already is facing $800 billion in unmet needs for roads and bridges alone. Even without disaster, we don’t have the manpower we need to address infrastructure demand.

President Donald Trump made a cursory nod to the labor shortage when he released his infrastructure plan earlier this year. His proposals—Pell Grants for short-term certification and credentialing; improved access to technical education; expanded work-study; and new licensing requirements—weren’t nearly enough.

We need immigration reform. We also need to address declining mobility and help Americans who’ve dropped out of the workforce or are underemployed.

At the construction season peak last summer, there were more than 200,000 unfilled industry jobs. According to the Associated General Contractors of America, 86 percent of construction companies can’t find qualified workers. Eighty percent can’t fill hourly jobs and half can’t fill salaried positions.

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