Construction Labor Shortage Stands in the Way of Low-Cost Housing and Good Jobs
An imminent shortage of construction workers could spell out trouble for the Los Angeles’s regional push to build new houses in order to lower costs for buyers and renters.
Finding workers to build homes has been challenging for several years, as reported in Capital & Main. The industry is facing a major shortage of mid-range skilled workers required for construction. Due to the lack of workers nationwide, there are fewer workers who might move to Southern California to fill those roles.
According to Capital & Main looming shortage of construction workers is putting the Los Angeles region on a potential collision course with one of its most urgent policy goals: building new housing to lower costs for buyers and renters.
The city of Los Angeles alone has set itself the goal of creating almost half a million new homes by 2029, according to its Los Angeles Housing Element.
But finding the workers to build those homes has been a challenge for several years. In a 2020 report, the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation said the industry is facing an “acute shortage” for many of the mid-range skills required in construction — including training for jobs like sheet metal workers, structural iron and steel workers, operating engineers, and welders and cutters.
