The job market is a hot topic of conversation these days, and many people are thinking differently about their work and perhaps even considering a career in the construction industry. As proud and experienced construction professionals, we’d like to share our thoughts about why we love this industry so much—and encourage you to consider joining us.

There’s a lot of job security in construction

To keep up with the needs of a growing population, we’re going to need 13,000 new buildings every day—and that’s not including single-family homes. It’ll take a lot of people to make that happen. On top of that, America is short about a million construction workers right now. This shortage includes skilled technicians and entry-level laborers. There is a lot of opportunity in the industry, and that’s not going to change any time soon. If you get in now, you can enjoy a long and fruitful career in construction.

Stay active all day long

Sitting at a desk is not for everyone—and it’s not all that good for you. But, in the construction industry, you get to keep moving all day. All that activity is bound to have some health benefits. Plus, you don’t have to worry about straining your eyes in front of a screen all the time.

Earn a good living

Construction companies are offering higher and higher starting rates to combat the labor shortage. But even under normal conditions, a career in the construction industry pays well. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, construction workers earn an average hourly wage of $32.86, $14 more than a restaurant or hotel worker.

In the construction world, experience matters. The more years you have under your belt, the more money you can earn. So construction managers, for example, leverage their experience to increase the financial rewards.

Get started without an expensive degree

As of mid-2021, Americans owe upwards of 1.59 trillion dollars in student loan debt. For some people, it’s a few thousand dollars. For others, it’s in the hundreds of thousands. As a result, millions of people are crippled by their student loan debt, to the point where they can’t take a vacation, buy a house, or even start a family.

That doesn’t have to be you.

A trade school education is far less expensive than a four-year degree. And with such good earning potential, you can pay it down fast and start chasing your other financial goals at a young age. And most technical programs are shorter than traditional college paths, which means you’ll be starting your construction career much sooner.

One more perk: Many vocational schools offer classes outside of working hours. So if you want to pick up another lucrative skill later on without having to leave your current job, you can.

Many different paths to a career in the construction industry

The construction industry relies on the skills and talents of many different kinds of people. As a result, there are endless possibilities for your career path in this dynamic field. Of course, we’re biased toward concrete, but the beauty of construction is that you’re always meeting someone with a slightly different specialty.
For example, many choose to become construction equipment operators. And a quick google search shows plenty of demand for this skill.
It’s easy to make connections with people who can share a thing or two about their area of expertise so that you can get a sense of all the options available to you.

See the outcome of your hard work with your own eyes

We never get tired of driving to the grocery store or the zoo and passing one of our completed projects on the way. It’s a real thrill to see the tangible results of your skills and time. Not every field offers you that level of satisfaction at the end of a project, but in construction, you get to watch the fruits of your labor grow every day.

There are a lot of on-the-job and off-the-clock benefits to working in the construction industry. If you want to talk to a member of the FraserCon team about why we love it, just give us a call.

Who knows — maybe we’ll hire you!