Undoubtedly, the COVID-19 Pandemic affected all levels and sectors of the global economy. Every industry had to adapt to these changes quickly and efficiently to make a strong recovery. In the case of construction recovery, there are some staffing tips that can be helpful to keep your business running.
- 1. What is staffing from the construction industry’s perspective?
- 2. How was your construction business affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic?
- 3. Which are the 3 staffing tips you should know for construction recovery?
- 4. Why are these staffing tips so important for construction recovery?
- 5. Where can you find information about staffing in the construction industry and more?
In this article, we will be showing you those 3 staffing tips you should definitely know for construction recovery. Here, you will learn how to apply them, and why they are very important in today’s construction industry. To do that, we will talk about the following topics:
- What is staffing from the construction industry’s perspective?
- How was your construction business affected by the COVID-19 pandemic?
- Which are the 3 staffing tips you should know for construction recovery?
- Why are these staffing tips so important for construction recovery?
- Where can you find information about staffing in the construction industry and more?  Â
1. What is staffing from the construction industry’s perspective?
The staffing concept is global: is the process of filling the roles within your company with suitable candidates. To do it, you must find, select, evaluate, and develop a working relationship with your employees. However, if you do not have the time, agencies like Connect Staff can help you.
When it comes to the construction industry, Staffing involves the filling of construction jobs. As you probably know, almost all of these jobs require skilled candidates, specialized in one of the many construction activities. Carpenters, electricians, plumbers, flaggers, or welders can be required for these construction industry roles.
Similar to other industries, the scheduling and planning of your construction projects will establish when and how Staffing should be performed. In this specific case of the construction business, temporary staffing is the regular norm. Hence, you should read about how a temporary staffing agency can make your life easier.
Construction firms have known and perfected their Staffing since the beginning of the industry. On the other hand, as we will explain in the next topic of this article, COVID-19 Pandemic changed the entire picture. These changes came for both Staffing firms searching for candidates and workers looking for new jobs.
2. How was your construction business affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic?
As it has been for all industries, COVID-19 changed the way of doing business. From products distribution to customer support, since the pandemic began, everything is different. Even the supply chain issues associated with it had affected staffing, as our article about the staffing effects of supply chain shortages reveals.
In the case of the construction industry, the main effect of the pandemic can be simplified in one word: uncertainty. For instance, fluctuations in the number of COVID-19 cases cause health regulations to vary from week to week. For the scheduling of your construction projects, it is a gigantic headache.
Consequently, you are right in expecting that staffing has also been disrupted. On one hand, the stalling of several construction projects has increased the number of workers available to be employed. But, the previously mentioned health regulations can complicate their hiring process, especially if it involves employee relocation.
However, constructions firms are very optimistic about the future ahead. In essence, you need to make proactive decisions for your construction company, to take advantage of the few available opportunities. If you manage to survive this period, the post-pandemic future will bring you great news.
3. Which are the 3 staffing tips you should know for construction recovery?
The 3 tips we explain here have a clear objective: Allowing your construction firm to have a strong recovery phase. Most importantly, they are the results of analyzing and understanding the new trends in the construction business. Hence, they will give you leverage over competitors by having a highly skilled workforce.
In addition, we must mention that these tips should be applied by your staffing agency, not by your consulting agency. Knowing the difference between the two can be a little bit tricky. To learn more about this, you can review this article about the difference between staffing and consulting services.
On the other hand, it is important to highlight that these tips are recommendations and not mandates. Inside the construction industry, every project is different, and every location has its own regulations and skilled workforce. Consequently, feel free to adapt them to your personal experience in the construction business. Â
We can guarantee that, by applying these tips correctly, you will put your construction firm in a very good position for the future ahead. Let us now reveal these amazing 3 tips that are recommended for you to know for Construction Recovery, with an additional one you can also use:
3.1 Expand your applicant pool
As we stated earlier, the amount of available workers to be employed has significantly increased due to the pandemic. In fact, this amount is the larger seen in recent history. You may think this makes it easier to find people for your construction project, but the truth is more complicated.
The problem is that construction firms see this availability and start adding filters to their job descriptions. This reduces their candidate base substantially, making their staffing a lot harder. However, the right choice you should make in your construction company is to expand your qualifications.
As a result of the expansion, you or your staffing agency will find easier the finding candidates process. This is because it will add the advantage of retrofitting the work to the available talent. In essence, workers will find in your company opportunities for training and advancement on the job.
In conclusion, this tip is directed to one topic: motivation. Advantages as the one pointed before will make your project attractive to incoming contractors. To know more about this topic in other industries, you can read our article about how to increase motivation among your remote employees and temp staff.
3.2 Schedule your project timelines based on your staffing requirements
The construction business is often a race against time. The main aspect that their clients search for, besides lower costs and esthetics, is who can finish their projects faster. In this matter, scheduling the works of your construction project is essential for their success, by reducing the undesired delays.
On the other hand, the COVID-19 pandemic increased the possibilities of delays occurrences in the construction industry dramatically. Health regulations variations can prohibit workers from attending projects sites several times. Besides, family situations regarding the pandemic can make a worker to choose stay at home over showing up for work.
Therefore, we strongly recommend that you include your staffing agency or department in your project’s planning. Today, the aspect of the presence or absence of workers in constructions sites can influence heavily on a project’s timing. Hence, knowing the concerns of each contractor can allow you to gauge availability.
Technology nowadays allows staffing agencies to perform all these activities of evaluating each contractor remotely. But, managing the staffing agency this way may come with some unknown challenges. To be informed about this, you can take a look at this article about how to manage your staffing agency remotely.
3.3 Engage safety protocols in your construction company as a recruiting advantage
You may think that, because of the health regulations, all construction companies are applying safety protocols in their job sites. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Some of them consider these protocols to be an unwelcome expense and choose not to apply them. Others apply them poorly.
However, with the COVID-19 pandemic and from the contractor’s perspective, the place where it is safer to work is the most desired. This means that, if your construction company takes care of your workers by having a solid health and safety plan, it will be ahead of its competitors regarding staffing.
Your health and safety plan should include additional PPE, including face shields, masks, and gloves, and a strong COVID-19 protocol. If you manage to emphasize workplace safety in your construction company, you will secure the services of essential contractors. They will feel safe and appreciated working in your construction firm.
This tip was born from one of the many trends in the construction industry. There are other trends regarding staffing that you should be aware of to keep your business running. If you want to know about these trends, you should check this article about the global staffing trends in 2022.
3.4 Find a staffing partner to maximize your resources
Applying these tips may be difficult for you if your construction firm is small or medium-size, with limited resources. Staffing requires a dedicated team that is constantly reviewing local regulations for every location. Is this your case? Then, you should find a staffing partner that can help you with it.
By having a staffing agency working with you, your focus can be always on your company’s goals. They can even establish the health safety protocols you need, with their correspondent testing and approvals. There are several examples in the construction industry where this partnership has delivered excellent results.
Above all, a staffing partner can bring you many advantages at an HR level. One of these advantages is the integration of hiring and HR systems into your staffing activities. To learn more about it, you can read this article about the benefits of integrating hiring and HR systems.
In conclusion, Construction Recovery also requires making smart partnerships. Finding the right staffing partner for you can impulse the growth of your construction company exponentially. If you want your firm to stop being a small one, this is the way you should follow.        Â
4. Why are these staffing tips so important for construction recovery?
In one previous topic, we mentioned that the biggest problem the construction industry has faced because of the pandemic is uncertainty. In this matter, every action or decision that is directed to bring certainty to construction projects can make a difference. These 3 tips are headed to bring that certainty.
Therefore, to make a strong recovery, knowing your employee’s needs, worries, and health concerns is paramount. Construction companies that take advantage of the high amount of workers available will be in a better position for future projects. In essence, you need to make your construction firm very attractive to them.
COVID-19 will eventually be a part of the past, but the memories of it will remain for a long time. Hence, companies that will be known for taking care of their workers during the pandemic will have competitive leverage. As it is in other industries, reputation here is important.
Now, if you are a worker looking for a new job, working with a staffing company can help you. Most importantly, it will accelerate your search.
5. Where can you find information about staffing in the construction industry and more?
As a sector extremely sensitive to economic cycles, the COVID-19 pandemic represented a hard hit for the construction industry. Hence, by knowing and applying these 3 staffing tips exposed here, a strong Construction Recovery can be very possible. Your construction firm needs to be ready for post-pandemic opportunities.
According to the staffing agency of your choice, and as you can review in this interesting article, there are several types of staffing services you can get. In Connect Staff, we believe in doing meaningful work for you, by providing the staffing services you require for your construction projects.
Do you have any questions regarding our staffing services? Feel free to contact us to obtain more information about it. You can email us at contact@connectstaff.ae, and you will talk to one of our representatives who will answer your questions.
Apply to work in a great stress-free environment today by sending us your CV to thetalentpoint.com. Furthermore, we will not store CVs that you send to contact@thetalentpoint.com. Make the move, start a new experience, and improve your professional life.
