An Investment in Careers

by Paul Deffenbaugh | 1 April 2022 12:00 am

If the Build Back Better bill also passes, there will be even more investment in the construction industry. Of course, everyone from manufacturers to architects to contractors to trades people will benefit, but I hope it will be the trades that see the most opportunity.

The general thinking is that a steady supply of money should help attract more people to the trades because the vicissitudes of the market—its wild swings up and down—will be smoothed out and become more predictable. In turn, that means contractors will be able to provide reliable employment for their workforce, and trades people can count on not getting laid off at the next downturn.

There is another factor at work in the ups and downs in the industry that works against the benefit of a steady investment, and that is its price-focused mentality.

The industry has always claimed it provides good-paying jobs, and it does. But the industry does not do a very good job of providing careers for trades people. After you get laid off the second time in 10 years because of an economic downturn, you begin searching around for other opportunities. You might even end up writing for a trade publication.

The hope is that this supply of steady investment will overcome those problems. But there is another factor at work in the ups and downs of the industry that works against the benefit of a steady investment, and that is its price-focused mentality. Much of the work that will be generated by the IIJA and, potentially, the Build Back Better bill, will rely on government financing. Because of that, much of that work will go to the lowest bidder.

I can’t think of any single aspect of our industry that undermines the long-term success of its participants more than the focus on giving work to the lowest bidder. The industry’s inability to sell its true value to building owners and other buyers means that the decisions about hiring are usually made on price, not quality—or, at least, the price of the project is the differentiator between equally qualified companies. And the problem with competing on price is there is always—always— someone offering a lower price. They do it by cutting corners.

There is an old business axiom that customers have three choices when buying. They can have it fast, cheap or good, but they can only get two of those attributes. Fast and cheap, but not good. Fast and good, but not cheap. Cheap and good, but not fast. You don’t get all three. In our industry, that axiom feels especially true. Sure, we’re getting a huge influx of investment over the next 10 years, but until we change the nature of our industry—until we move from price-oriented to quality-oriented—that money will only reinforce a system focused on the wrong value.

And the skilled labor shortage will endure despite that money. It would be a shame to lose this opportunity to solve one of our biggest problems, but just throwing money at it won’t do it.

Source URL: https://www.metalconstructionnews.com/articles/an-investment-in-careers/

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