A shortage of workers could hinder an infrastructure boom

“The greatest period of construction in human history.” That’s what a new report, out Friday from BlackRock, says the world could be entering.

The report estimates up to $85 trillion spent globally on new infrastructure in the next 15 years. That infrastructure will take the form of data centers to fuel the artificial intelligence boom, along with new bridges, modern water systems, and updated roads.

But to build all that, we need skilled workers who know how to do the building. And right now, we don’t have enough of them.

Kelso Burnett, an electrical contractor, is based in Chicago. Last year, about a fifth of its revenue came from building new data centers. William Martin, Jr., a manager at the company, expects that to go up. 

“There's tons of them. There's probably six of them within driving distance of Chicago that are either happening or getting ready to start up,” he said.

Martin said the unions he works with are stretching to get electricians — offering more pay to get them to come from other parts of the country, and trying to get older ones to put off retirement.

Sandra Lawson, author of that new BlackRock report, said we’re going to need more. Not just electricians, but also HVAC technicians, plumbers, and people who are skilled builders.

“The challenge, I think, over the next few years is that the supply can't ramp up as quickly as demand is ramping up, because … many of these jobs require apprenticeship training, and that takes time,” Lawson said.

Here in the U.S., another factor is the immigration crackdown. Brian Turmail, a spokesman for the Associated General Contractors of America, said some construction sites are being raided by ICE. That’s one problem. Another is the elimination of Temporary Protected Status for some immigrants.

“And that means that person who was legally authorized to work. And the company had every right and was lawfully allowed to hire them last week, they have to let them go this week,” said Turmail. “We are actually making it harder for firms to build, not easier when we shrink the size of the workforce.”

To grow the size of the workforce, Turmail said we need more skills training in schools so that future workers are exposed to careers in construction.