We believe you can teach a good worker a skill. You can't take someone with poor work habits and teach them how to work. As Porter's comments suggest, finding a competent, reliable, and teachable employee is just one piece of the work force puzzle. A few years ago, Fails Management Institute surveyed executives heading 1,300 large construction firms concerning work force issues. Two-thirds of the executives who responded said it was harder to find and hire skilled craftsmen than it was five years earlier.
Demographics accounts for part of the quandary.
America's population is graying. The portion that contractors traditionally have relied on for entry-level positions people between the ages of 18 and 24 is shrinking. The U.S. Census Bureau projects that this group will decrease from 26.1 million in 1990 to 25.2 million by the year 2000. The 25-34 crowd also will shrink, dropping from 43.9 million to 37.1 million. Granted, the entire U.S. work force is growing larger.