Employers’ group the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) has renewed its call for the Trump administration to provide legal pathways for people to enter the US to work in construction after its latest annual workforce survey found that 45% of firms say labour shortages are causing project delays.
The survey found that 92% of contractors said they were having a hard time filling open positions, a figure that is broadly in line with last year’s results.
But new this year is the finding that 28% of respondents reported being affected directly or indirectly by immigration enforcement activities initiated by President Trump after taking office in January.
5% of firms reported a jobsite or offsite location being visited by immigration agents, while 10% said workers had left or failed to turn up because of actual or rumoured raids.
20% report that subcontractors had lost workers.
The impact of immigration enforcement varied widely by state, however.
Contractors in Georgia, Virginia, Alabama, Nebraska and South Carolina were affected most, ranging from 75% of firms in Georgia to 36% in South Carolina.
Conversely, only 8% of firms in Idaho and 9% in Alaska reported being impacted by immigration enforcement activities in the past six months.
Nearly 1,400 firms from across the industry completed the survey in late July and early August. It was conducted by the AGC and the National Center for Construction Education and Research.
Special construction visas
The AGC is calling for more funding for construction education and new, lawful ways for people to enter the country to work in construction.
“Construction projects of all types are being delayed because there aren’t enough qualified workers available for firms to hire,” said Ken Simonson, the AGC’s chief economist.
He said the government should establish a new, construction-specific temporary work visa programme.
Only 10% of firms are using the H-2B visa programme or other temporary work visa schemes, which the AGC said showed how difficult the schemes were to use.
Tariffs, too
Tariffs are also hurting the industry, the survey found.
16% of firms said at least one project they’re working on has been postponed, cancelled or scaled back because of tariffs.
41% of firms report they have raised prices because of tariffs, and 39% have accelerated purchases in anticipation of new tariffs.
Only 14% of firms report they have switched from foreign to domestic suppliers because of tariffs.
The AGC said it was pushing the Trump administration to quickly resolve trade disputes with major US trading partners, including Canada, Mexico and China, to eliminate the threat of punitive tariffs.
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