Construction Workforce Increasing

There has been a lot made of the skills gap in Construction in recent months, particularly in regards to how the industry needs to do more to attract A-Level students and other youngsters towards the industry by highlighting how their talents can be applied to various aspects of Construction.

While this is certainly true news that the workforce is now the largest it has been since 2009 will not be surprising to most.

The Office of National Statistics (ONS) has released figures stating that the construction workforce has reached 2.3 million as of the second quarter of 2016, which is the highest it has been since the equivalent period in 2009.

It appears that more people are being attracted to Construction as a result of initiatives within the industry; the number of people in Construction has gone up by 2% since the first quarter of the year. This is further demonstrated by the fact that employment was shown to be 5% higher when compared to 2015.

Even more encouraging is that employment is now 10% higher than it was in the first quarter of 2013, when Construction really started to feel the sting of the British recession.

The odd thing that many have pointed to is that these figures seem to be at odds with previously released information from the ONS that claimed that construction output is in decline, with the organisation claiming that the industry is in a “technical recession” after two consecutive quarters of declines in output being recorded.

It is certainly an odd parallel and may demonstrate that the ONS does not have all of the data it needs to provide accurate figures on Construction output, as has been alluded to by key figures in the industry in recent times.

Regardless, this increase in employment is certainly something to be celebrated and we are delighted that many within the industry have bolstered their ranks so that they can offer even better services.

If you have recently introduced new talent into your company and want to find out more about the the latest projects and new clients that are on offer at C-Link then head over to the website www.c-link.com. The C-Link Live Projects page will provide you with plenty of projects that are currently in tender phase and the revolutionary procurement platform is helping to better connect Specialist Contractors and Construction Professionals (QS’ and Project Managers).

For more information head to www.c-link.com.

C-Link – Supporting The Growth of Construction

About Paul Heming

Paul was a Quantity Surveyor who gained 10 years experience of managing £200 million worth of flagship UK projects, including 20 Fenchurch Street and Battersea Power Station. In 2015, Paul founded C-Link with the intention of sharing his expertise of managing major projects with the SME market.