Last October, the Council of Minister approved a Royal Decree by virtue of which more than 4,400 million Euros of investment in residential renovation and construction of social housing were regulated by European Funds. Within the rehabilitation program, a budget of more than 3,400 million is mobilized, with lines through which subsidies of up to 80% can be obtained, with a maximum of 21,400 Euros per home, depending on the consumption savings of energy achieved in rehabilitated buildings. Very good news that, however, can fail. The reason? Lack of labor force.
In the construction sector we are suffering from a serious shortage of qualified labor force. According to data from the National Construction Confederation, handling projections made with the entry of these Next Generation European Funds, the personnel deficit could be around 700,000, a figure that makes one fear the worst.
The accounts would not finish of being sorted out, even if the sector were able to recover all those who after the crisis of 2008-2009 were recycled or, simply, clung to segments such as the hospitality industry to get through it.
Denied profession
For too long, having a job on the construction site has been disparaged. Considered a trade that does not require qualification, a professional outlet for those who do not want to train themselves, construction is no longer attractive to young people.
Since 2008, the year when the brick crisis broke out, the number of young people working in the sector has plummeted. Workers under 34 years of age have gone from 42% to now not even 20% (18%). The loss of prestige and the little attention that different governments had paid to Vocational Training (FP) has also been a factor that has contributed to this situation.
Culminating the perfect storm, we could find that within a few years, in the 2030, about 30% of those who work in construction will be retired. Where will the relay come from then? Who will build or rehabilitate homes?
Establish a professional career
At Blues Simon Group we have been working for years to demolish these myths of working on the construction site, banishing that misconception that it is a low-skilled trade. Not only that, but also discarding the idea that it is not a job for women – currently they only represent 8% in the sector. In this sense, the Company’s commitment to continuous training in new materials or new construction techniques has been one of the keys to our success.
From our point of view, attracting the talent and retaining it is an essential ingredient to offer quality products that, in our case, are the homes, either of new construction or renovation. Aspects such as energy efficiency, for example, introduce changes in the way of working that require a certain level of specialization.
Based on these lines, Blues Simon Group has long since introduced the concept of a professional career in the Company, something that our sector should consider generalizing once and for all. In essence, it is about progressing, that employees have before them a professional career that motivates them, that contributes to the organization and makes them better professionals, multidisciplinary experts.
That has been part of the recipe for our success since we were born more than a decade ago, not only recruiting the best talent, but also helping to train thembecause, after all, workers make up the pillars of our Company. And that must also be the recipe for our sector to claim the qualification it needs and to value all its professionals.
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