The Majority of Construction Companies Plan to Hire in 2023 but Most of Them are Struggling to Find Workers

The Associated General Contractors of America’s 2023 Construction Outlook National Survey reports that 69% of construction companies plan to hire in 2023 but 80% of those companies are struggling to find craft positions, both salaried and hourly. As a result, 72% increased base pay in 2022 compared to 2021 and a third offered incentives and bonuses to attract and/or keep workers.

However, those efforts were not enough, as 58% expect hiring to continue to struggle or get worse. The lack of a full workforce can delay, or many times derail a construction project. A total of 70% responded stating that insufficient supply of workers or subcontractors is their biggest concern in 2023. It is no surprise that almost a quarter of construction companies expect to invest in HR software technologies. To compliment these HR technologies, companies should consider using online job boards that attract a large amount of potential skilled workers, including diverse candidates.

For example, in April 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics reported that 30% of U.S. construction workers are Hispanics (in Texas, California, and Florida, the number is over 50%). In addition, 47% of U.S. construction general laborers, 53% of painters and paperhangers, 36% of carpenters, 23% of HVAC workers, and 25% of electricians are Hispanic. To increase the odds of reaching Hispanics candidates, construction companies should consider a diversity job board such as ConstructionTabajos.com, that caters to Hispanic and Bilingual candidates.

These diversity job boards allow construction companies to reach a critical mass within the construction industry while also demonstrating that their company is making a concerted effort to attract and keep diverse candidates. It also provides an opportunity to showcase nontangible benefits that those companies offer (in addition to pay, benefits, and incentives). These can include highlighting a diverse leadership team, training and safety materials in Spanish, and/or bilingual HR trainers to instill confidence in candidates that companies will provide a welcoming environment for all employees to thrive and remain safe. The use of diversity job boards and/or highlighting how companies aim to develop a company culture of diversity can set them apart in an extremely competitive hiring landscape.

Update: An earlier version of this article appeared on HispanicConstructionJobs.com on January 22, 2023 prior to the rebranding of the website to the current name, ConstructionTrabajos.com in 2025. All links and mentions to the previous website have been updated with the new website link and name.