One in five construction companies say they are sometimes forced to reject offers of work despite the fact they are interested in taking on the work. The reason is clear: the companies say they are understaffed. According to research by industry federation Embuild there are currently 14,000 vacancies in the sector. It’s a problem that has been with is for years.
As a result, many construction companies have no choice but to reduce their operations, says Niko Demeester of Embuild.
"They cannot meet all customer demands. 17% of companies postpone starting construction sites, and in 1 in 5 cases they don't even sign up to the tender. Companies are not accepting orders because they simply can’t guarantee they will fulfil them."
Construction companies appear mainly to be looking for classic profiles: construction workers and site supervisors are in high demand.
The industry is calling for the government to do more to convince people to work in construction. One of the problems is that construction suffers from an image problem.
The number of students in the second and third grades of full-time construction education fell by 12% between the 2016-2017 and 2021-2022 school years.
"We need to highlight construction's assets: it is varied work that is increasingly technological, clean and less demanding. Moreover, construction workers - after those in the chemical industry - are the best paid workers and enjoy many social benefits," Demeester explains.
The construction federation is now specifically targeting young people as prospective construction workers and will be present at several festivals such as Suikerrock and Couleur Café this summer.