Do you know that construction job gains in the capital area have outpaced gains in Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids and Detroit?  And that construction wages are on target with wages in manufacturing?

A new study by Capital Area Michigan Works! of the construction workforce in the capital area, titled Construction: Building the Capital Area’s Future, brought together the Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Growth Bureau of Labor Market Information and Strategic Initiatives and a panel of construction experts to present the findings of the new labor market information study.

The report found construction offers average wages 17 percent above average wages for total employment.  Construction will add more than 1,200 jobs by 2012.

Moreover, construction offers unprecedented opportunities to work for small companies and to become an entrepreneur.  The report found 80 percent of local construction firms employ fewer than 10 workers, and 99 percent employ fewer than 100 workers.  In construction, many occupations dwarf the self-employment rate of 7 percent for total employment, such as painters/paperhangers (46 percent self-employed), floor workers (42 percent) and carpenters (33 percent).

Perhaps the best news of all – construction jobs can’t be outsourced. You can’t build a road in Williamston from China.  Sure, construction jobs are subject to business cycle fluctuations, but the 30-year trend is one of growth.

This is all great news, and yet the industry still faces challenges in recruiting the caliber of workers it needs.  Construction today is a high-tech, highly skilled industry, and workers need to be trained and able to think on their feet, work independently and adapt with the changing technology.

In a Lansing State Journal article, Charles Clark, president of Clark Construction in Lansing, said, “There is a perception that people in construction have below-average intelligence or don’t have a healthy home life.  There is a caricature of construction workers.”

It appears, however, as though the construction industry recognizes the need to communicate to displaced workers and students the opportunities available within the sector, and to help solve its “image problem.”

In the same Lansing State Journal article, Scott McDonald, director of apprenticeships with the Laborers’ International Union of North America, said, “Let’s address these recruiting issues.  I see a real problem on the horizon with baby boomers retiring and the fact that there’s not a lot of interest [in construction work] among young people.”

We spoke with these employers extensively, and they all see a need to focus on these workforce issues.  As a result, Capital Area Michigan Works! will work to form a construction council to address these issues.

The construction industry is doing a lot more than building our roads and homes.  It’s building our economy.

For a copy of the report, visit www.camw.org.

		Douglas E. Stites is the CEO of Capital Area Michigan Works!, a special purpose unit of government committed the connecting job seekers and employers through innovative programs for both.