Who will build? Labor shortages in Alamo City and Texas

SAN ANTONIO – The construction industry in Alamo City and the state is not very optimistic, according to Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), who conducted industry-wide surveys to gain a better understanding of the challenge construction firms are facing on the employment front.

The results show that in San Antonio, 83 percent of the industry’s firms are having a hard time filling craft-worker positions — including laborers, carpenters, electricians and cement masons.

That figure compares to the 79 percent of firms in Texas that are facing challenges filling these positions; and the 74 percent of firms nationwide that are having a hard time filling these positions.

The future isn’t looking much better.

Locally, 100 percent of the firms in San Antonio do not expect the craft-worker shortage to improve over the next year. By comparison, 87 percent of Texas’ firms, and 86 percent of national firms expect that it will remain difficult, or get even harder, to find qualified craft workers.