The construction business is having trouble attracting young job seekers.
As The Wall Street Journal reports, the share of workers in the sector who are 24 years old or younger has declined in 48 states since the last housing boom in 2005, according to an analysis of U.S. census data by Issi Romem, chief economist at construction data firm BuildZoom.
Nationally, the share of young construction workers declined nearly 30% from 2005 through 2016, according to Romem.
While there’s no single reason why younger folks are losing interest in a job that generally pays well and doesn’t require a college education, their indifference is exacerbating a labor shortage that has meant fewer homes being built and rising prices, possibly for years to come. That is a big reason why U.S. home prices are rising much faster than incomes, and why the homeownership rate remains stuck a full percentage point below the 50-year average.
Construction’s inability to attract young workers is something of a mystery.
Some note that many high schools cut vocational training programs during the recession and are only now bringing them back. Others point to parents’ desire for their children to get a college degree, the allure of technology jobs and the high cost of living in areas where jobs are most plentiful.
Some say builders’ rising costs are partly to blame. With rising material costs and wages, builders often don’t want to waste time and money on workers who aren’t already trained, said John Courson, president and chief executive of the Home Builders Institute.
Some economists say the construction industry could attract more workers if builders raised wages further to better compete with other industries. But builders say that rising costs are already squeezing their margins, and if they pay workers more it will raise the price of homes beyond what many people can afford.
