U.S. employers will soon face “the largest labor shortage the country has ever seen,” according to a report from Lightcast, a labor market data and analysis firm.
The problem will be especially acute in fields like plumbing, HVAC, and auto maintenance. The labor force as a whole is being challenged by Baby Boomers retiring, falling childbirth rates, and a shrinking cohort of working age adults participating in the labor force.
For construction and trades, the problem is worsened by younger generations seeking office-based jobs requiring a college degree, prime working-age men exiting the labor force due to increased substance abuse and incarceration, and women filling less than 2% of jobs in traditionally male-dominated fields.
The only growth in the U.S. labor force since 2019 is due to immigration and foreign-born workers, the report says.
Related Stories
| Oct 19, 2011
Another drop for Architecture Billings Index
Positive conditions seen last month were more of an aberration.
| Oct 19, 2011
System for installing grease duct enclosures achieves UL listing
Updated installation results in 33% space savings.
| Oct 18, 2011
Michel Bruneau wins 2012 AISC T.R. Higgins Award
The AISC T.R. Higgins Lectureship Award is presented annually by the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) and recognizes an outstanding lecturer and author whose technical paper(s) are considered an outstanding contribution to the engineering literature on fabricated structural steel.
| Oct 18, 2011
St. Martin’s Episcopal School expands facilities
Evergreen commences construction on environmentally sustainable campus expansion.
| Oct 17, 2011
Austin's newest urban apartment complex under construction
Complex sits on a four-acre waterfront site along Lady Bird Lake with spectacular city and lake views, and is slated to open spring 2013.
| Oct 17, 2011
Aerialogics announces technology partnership with CertainTeed Corp.
CertainTeed to provide Aerialogics’ Aerial Measurement Services to its credentialed contractor base and utilize the technology in its Roofing Products Division.
| Oct 17, 2011
Big D Floor covering supplies to offer Johnsonite Products??
Strategic partnership expands offering to south and west coast customers.
| Oct 17, 2011
Clery Act report reveals community colleges lacking integrated mass notification systems
“Detailed Analysis of U.S. College and University Annual Clery Act Reports” study now available.
| Oct 17, 2011
USGBC L.A. Chapter's Green Gala to feature Jason McLennan as keynote speaker
Chapter to presents inaugural Sustainable Innovation Awards,