How to Hire More Construction Workers

Last updated on February 15, 2024

Feeling the pinch while hiring construction workers? You’re not alone. The construction industry faces an all-time high in unfilled job openings, with over 390,000 per month in 2022 – a historic high. Even with a low 4.6% unemployment rate, it’s estimated that a whopping 546,000 additional workers are needed in 2023 to meet demand. Fortunately, there are effective steps you can take to find and attract more workers for your open positions.

Understanding hiring trends in the construction industry

The construction industry has its own rhythm, and it dances to the beat of economic trends. When things are good, like when interest rates drop, there’s a construction boom as more people can afford to buy homes. That means more construction workers are in demand.

However, economic downturns, like the Great Recession of 2008, can disrupt this cycle, impacting construction companies’ staffing and competitiveness. As a result, construction companies are on a rollercoaster, trying to keep the right number of workers while staying competitive. Hiring needs change from place to place, following population trends. To quickly hire the best construction workers, you’ve got to stay flexible and be ready to adapt to the ups and downs.

Here’s how you can hire more construction workers for your company

Determine the type of workers you need

It’s crucial to differentiate between skilled and unskilled labor when hiring construction workers because the nature of construction projects can vary widely in terms of complexity, technical requirements, and safety considerations. Skilled workers have specific training and expertise in their respective trades, so they are suitable for tasks that require precision and technical knowledge. Unskilled workers, on the other hand, may be more appropriate for simpler, labor-intensive tasks.

To ensure you attract candidates who best fit your construction projects, leading to more successful hires and efficient outcomes, it’s essential to clearly differentiate between skilled and unskilled positions in your recruitment content.

Create a compelling job ad creative

Construction is all about real, tangible results, and social media is the perfect canvas to showcase them. With compelling images and videos that shine a spotlight on your team members performing their jobs, your job advertisement springs to life, becoming an irresistible, concrete opportunity for potential candidates. While job postings on traditional job sites rely on plain text, innovative recruiting solutions allow you to harness the power of visual storytelling so you can grab the immediate attention of construction workers. Such as social media.

Use targeted advertising on social media

When actively recruiting construction workers, you may have noticed that a substantial number of skilled workers are not registered on job boards. This can pose a significant obstacle, particularly when you’re high-volume hiring, seeking seasonal labor, or scouting for talent in rural regions, where challenging working conditions can make attracting the best candidates more difficult. However, there’s another avenue worth exploring — social media. With over 300 million social media users in the U.S. alone, social media platforms offer access to a vast and diverse audience, extending beyond the reach of traditional job boards. This expanded reach enhances your chances of connecting with more qualified construction workers, even those who aren’t active on job boards.

But it’s not just the robust talent pool that gives you a competitive edge – it’s the targeted advertising opportunities. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok provide Talent Acquisition teams with the ability to tailor recruiting ad campaigns to reach individuals with construction-related interests, skills, and experience. This precision targeting ensures that your job ads reach those who are most likely to possess the qualifications you’re seeking, so you can fill your toughest positions faster.

Make your candidate experience mobile-friendly

A majority of construction workers rely on mobile devices for their job searches. Social media job ads are designed to be easily viewed and accessible via smartphones, significantly enhancing convenience for potential candidates.

Your job ads become more engaging and user-friendly when candidates explore and apply directly from their mobile devices. Besides simplifying the application process, this also increases your reach among candidates who prefer mobile job hunting, ensuring you connect with a broader pool of candidates.

Shorten your application process

When workers encounter overly complex or time-consuming applications, they may abandon the process. A shorter application process is more accessible and convenient for construction workers who often have busy schedules and physically demanding jobs. It reduces the time and effort required to apply, making it more likely for them to reach the finish line so that you can reduce your dropout rates.

Also, as candidates appreciate a hassle-free and efficient application process, you can enhance their perception of your company and encourage them to explore more job opportunities with you in the future.

Ensure faster response times

In the competitive construction industry where skilled workers may have multiple job offers, you stand out by quickly responding to applicants. It helps you move qualified candidates through the various recruiting stages more efficiently, reducing the time it takes to fill positions.

When applicants receive prompt feedback, they feel acknowledged and respected, increasing their satisfaction with your organizations’ recruitment process. A positive experience can lead to word-of-mouth recommendations and a stronger employer brand. 

SMS recruiting emerges as a powerful tool for offering a direct and effective means of communication. With SMS, you can immediately connect with your candidates, ensuring that your interactions are timely so that you can close construction workers faster than other employers. 

Quickly prescreen them

Construction projects often require a rapid response to changing demands, and having a streamlined prescreening process allows you to identify qualified candidates more quickly. This efficiency is essential for keeping projects on track.

A streamlined prescreening process reduces the workload on your Talent Acquisition team, so that they can focus on assessing and interviewing the most promising candidates.

Utilizing technology, such as automated prescreening tools, you can streamline the process even further for a more efficient candidate evaluation.

The bottom line

The construction industry’s quest for skilled workers is presenting challenges for Talent Acquisition teams. But through strategic steps like optimizing job advertisements, embracing social media, ensuring mobile-friendly experiences, simplifying applications, and expediting prescreening processes, you can not only meet these demands but also enhance your recruitment efficiency.

With Boostpoint®, hiring more construction workers has never been easier. Leverage our hyper-targeted recruiting job ads, pre-screening tool, and automated SMS workflows to swiftly fill your high-volume positions.