A new workforce white paper commissioned by the PEI Foundation estimates that the energy handling equipment industry needs approximately 8,872 additional technicians beyond the current workforce to close staffing gaps and account for one year of retirements and turnover.
Approximately 12,361 technicians are employed by the 526 companies in the PEI Service and Construction member category. At the midpoint planning estimate, the industry needs a total workforce of about 21,233 technicians, including 5,850 technicians to address the current installation and service shortfall, 2,472 annual turnover replacements and 550 replacements for expected retirements.
“The workforce shortage in our industry isn't coming. It's already here,” said Jason Blake, PEI President. “Companies need qualified technicians now to meet existing workloads, replace experienced workers and take advantage of business opportunities they currently do not have the workforce to pursue."
More than eight in 10 PEI members describe their companies as understaffed, while 89% identified difficulty finding qualified candidates as a reason for technician shortages. They say adequate staffing would allow their companies to perform substantially more installation and service work. If workforce availability were not an issue, the most common reponse was that companies could take on 25 percent more work.
Share this:
