Skills shortages have been looming over the construction sector since it began recovering from the global financial crisis in 2013. The sector has bounced back quicker than expected from the latest crisis of the Covid-19 pandemic and it is estimated that the industry will return to 2019 levels of output by 2022. The easing of Covid restrictions and reopening of various sectors has meant that demand for workers rose at its fastest rate for more than 23 years in May 2021.
But on the contrary, the number of staff available to fill construction and other skilled trades jobs has declined at the quickest rate seen since 2017. One of the primary reasons for this decline, is the ageing workforce within the sector. A fifth of workers are aged 55 or over and will retire before 2030. In addition, 20,000+ EU workers left Britain in 2019, a figure which is expected to drop by an additional 22% by 2030.
With fewer skilled workers available to meet the recruitment needs of an estimated 1.25 million workers before 2030, the construction and skilled trades’ industries are undoubtedly in the midst of a skills shortage crisis. If you have been struggling to recruit within your repairs and maintenance team, you may have already considered what your alternatives could be.
What does plan B look like?
It is clear that the skilled worker shortage will be an on-going issue present for some time. Therefore, organisations which utilise construction and skilled trades workers need to consider other ways in which they can maximise the productivity of their teams.
For organisations operating within the Social Housing sector, choosing the right software-partner should be one key area for consideration because when it comes to managing repairs and maintenance jobs, the right software enables inefficient or manual processes to be minimised whilst also providing complete visibility over all resources. This ensures that more jobs are completed at the first appointment, which reduces costs and strain on operatives, whilst in turn improving tenant satisfaction. In addition, optimised scheduling functionality helps ensure that only the operatives in the closest location, with the right skill sets to complete the job, are matched to each appointment.
In summary, Job Scheduling Software seamlessly unites your teams, recording everything in real-time through desktop and mobile apps, which gives everyone, no matter what their role in the service delivery, one version of the truth. This in turn drives efficiencies, service excellence and improved productivity.
If you are faced with ongoing recruitment challenges, and need to consider other ways of maximising productivity from your current team, please speak to one of our experienced advisers who can help you better understand the benefits of using a system like Oneserve.
