The UK has a major infrastructure pipeline, but there is a straightforward problem: the construction industry does not have enough skilled workers to deliver it.
Projects including Heathrow’s third runway, the Lower Thames Crossing, Sizewell C, national grid upgrades and investment in the water sector will require a large workforce. The government’s plans to increase infrastructure investment therefore depend not only on funding and approvals, but on whether the people needed to build these projects are available.
The scale of the workforce gap is already significant. The Construction Industry Training Board estimates that another 250,000 construction workers will be needed between 2024 and 2028. The Public Accounts Committee has also warned that skills shortages could affect the delivery of major infrastructure projects.
The construction workforce is ageing, while the number of younger workers entering the sector has fallen. Census analysis cited in the whitepaper found that 16 to 24-year-olds were the only construction age group to shrink proportionally between 2011 and 2021. At the same time, the number of workers aged 50 to 64 and 65 and over increased.
Experienced workers are approaching retirement, while there are not enough younger workers coming through to replace them. Retirements can also remove specialist knowledge that is difficult to replace quickly. Apprenticeships are therefore central to the industry’s ability to rebuild its workforce. The CITB estimates that apprenticeship participation in construction needs to increase threefold.
The labour market has also been affected by Brexit and the pandemic. The industry previously relied heavily on workers from other European countries, while tighter immigration rules have increased the importance of developing domestic talent. The pandemic also contributed to earlier retirements and changed attitudes towards jobs requiring long periods away from home.
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