The ‘boom-bust-boom’ nature of UK construction is putting companies off investing and leading to a skills shortage that could threaten the future of the industry, experts are warning.
Mark Wakeford, managing director of contractor, Stepnell, and a member of the board of the Built Environment Hub, developed to connect the construction industry across the Midlands region, claims current efforts to encourage more people into graduate and apprenticeship roles are doomed to failure.
And he called for a more-tailored solution to the problem.
Our industry has been here before and we are rolling out the same response, which many cynics would say allows us to train the next cohort just in time for the next recession
He told BBH: “The construction industry is picking up after a recession and we are short of skills. Quite rightly, the industry is responding to this in the time-honoured way of encouraging more people into the industry. However, it all sounds rather repetitive.
“Our industry has been here before and we are rolling out the same response, which many cynics would say allows us to train the next cohort just in time for the next recession.
“Given the huge improvements in communications, and the obvious need to upskill everyone within the industry to meet new challenges and opportunities, shouldn't our industry be looking to tackle the skills crisis in different, more-imaginative ways?”
While there are skills shortages across the board, there are particular problems within carpentry, joinery, and bricklaying, according to the Home Builders Federation, which supports calls for increased recruitment.
Its chief executive told BBH: “The skills time bomb has arisen for a number of reasons. Around 400,000 construction workers left the industry since the downturn hit in 2007 and many will never return. If you combine this with an increase in workload as the economy recovers, all the signs point to the skills shortage getting worse before it gets better.”
There are a variety of reasons for the shortage of both managerial and trade skills, including a poor image of the construction industry, substandard careers advice, poor levels of diversity, and the traditional boom-bust-boom business cycle.
“Many companies adopt short-term horizons and accept the churn endemic in the industry. This makes investing in people a difficult choice,” said Wakeford.
Far better to have organisations with a variety of work streams, and an asset base to see them through the bad times, employing multi-skilled staff who can adapt to a variety of work
He is calling for a three-pronged response to the problem - tackling the structural causes of skills shortages, treating the symptoms of this lack of skills, and making better use of skills already within the industry.
He said: “Construction's boom-and-bust cycle is an intractable issue and I doubt our industry can single-handedly create a steady state demand for new works.
“There are, however, many things that we could do to mitigate this corrosive cycle in which we operate.
“Organisations need to learn to retain assets so they can diversify during tougher times. Far better to have organisations with a variety of work streams, and an asset base to see them through the bad times, employing multi-skilled staff who can adapt to a variety of work. This would be a responsible response to a cyclical industry.”
There are currently a large number of initiatives in hand to increase the number of apprentices and trainee managers within the industry. In particular, efforts are being made to attract significantly more women and ethnic minorities into the field.
Wakeford said: “Apprenticeships as a route to professional qualifications now demonstrate that NVQs have matured and are of a reliable standard that really does match traditional academic qualifications. Creating these alternative routes is a great way of broadening out the appeal of construction to those who may not have considered it as a career.”
He added that companies should aim to have at least 8% of their workforce at trainee or apprenticeship level.
The construction industry has seen many measures that could improve productivity, but, like our industry, these have been fragmented and rarely brought together
“The recurring issue when people are busy is finding the time and the resources to invest in training, both new entrants and existing staff. However, many organisations recognise that in times of great change, it is more important to train than ever and it is great to see the amount and breadth of training that is happening within the industry.”
But, he warned, these improvements must be underpinned by an increase in overall productivity, creating a more-static marketplace. This will be helped by increasing the use of off-site construction techniques and significantly increasing the level of standardisation of common building elements.
I suspect that if we tackle the shortage as we always have then we will have the same problem at the next recession
He said: “The construction industry has seen many measures that could improve productivity, but, like our industry, these have been fragmented and rarely brought together.
“There is an opportunity to tackle our skills shortage in a new way that will help prevent a future crisis. I suspect that if we tackle the shortage as we always have then we will have the same problem at the next recession.
“There is a great opportunity with the advances in collaborative tools to train our managers in LEAN techniques that will reduce the skills deficit and prepare managers for a variety of new business situations as the economy rises and falls.”
Roger Bristow, manager at UK Construction Recruitment, added: “The key to getting construction employment under control is training and recruitment.
“The UK is really going places this year, and we all have our part to play.”
