A modern approach to labor in the construction industry combines workforce development with technology and equipment that reduce avoidable labor hours, coordinate crews, improve access and safety, and shorten the time needed for people to become productive. It does not treat software as a substitute for skilled workers. The practical goal is to let qualified people spend more of their shift on value-producing work while making shortages, licensing gaps and schedule risks visible early.
The need is measurable. In an Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) and NCCER workforce survey released August 28, 2025, 92% of construction firms that were hiring said they had difficulty finding qualified workers, 57% said available candidates lacked essential skills or an appropriate license, and 45% said labor shortages were causing project delays. Those percentages describe survey respondents, not every contractor, but they show why labor planning now belongs beside estimating, scheduling and safety planning.
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What labor pressure looks like now
Construction labor constraints affect more than the number of people on a payroll. A shortage can leave a project without a licensed operator, force a foreman to move an experienced worker between tasks, increase overtime, or delay a sequence that depends on one specialist. When the schedule slips, subcontractors may lose their planned slot and materials can arrive before the site is ready.
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Ken Simonson, AGC chief economist, summarized the 2025 survey’s finding this way: “Construction projects of all types are being delayed because there aren’t enough qualified workers available for firms to hire.” The statement is about the firms surveyed and should not be read as a forecast for every market.
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Skills and replacement demand matter as much as headcount
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) 2026 Occupational Outlook Handbook page for construction laborers and helpers reports a median annual wage of $46,680 in May 2025. It projects 6% employment growth from 2025 through 2035 and about 137,000 openings per year on average. Those openings include replacement needs when workers leave an occupation or the labor force, not only newly created jobs. The occupation group is narrower than the entire construction workforce, so its outlook should not be generalized to every craft or management role.
The 57% skills-and-license result from AGC/NCCER explains why simply increasing recruiting volume may not solve a site-level problem. A contractor can have applicants but still lack people who can read the relevant drawings, operate equipment safely, or hold the license required for a task. A modern labor plan therefore connects recruiting, training, credential verification and daily production planning.
What the earlier shortage figures do—and do not—show
A January 2022 Building Design + Construction vendor article cited several older estimates: about 1,000,000 construction workers were lost during the initial COVID-19 shutdown, with one-fifth not yet recovered; 88% of contractors reported moderate-to-high difficulty finding skilled workers; 49% of civil contractors submitted higher bids because of skilled-worker shortages; 66% said new technology increased productivity; and 41% said technology improved project-budget management. Those numbers retain the attributions and context given in that 2022 article. They are historical, not current industry estimates, and the underlying reports were not independently checked for this article.
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The approach has four connected parts. First, map the work and the competencies it requires. Second, use planning tools to make labor, equipment and sequence decisions before crews arrive. Third, choose physical systems that make safe work and repeatable assembly easier. Fourth, train and measure the process so a productivity improvement does not create a safety, quality or rework problem.
- Work design: Break each activity into crew composition, skills, access requirements, setup time, production sequence and handoffs.
- Digital coordination: Keep layouts, quantities, pour or erection plans, equipment lists and schedule assumptions in a form that supervisors and field crews can use.
- Safer access: Select platforms, scaffolds, formwork and lifting arrangements that reduce awkward handling and unplanned improvisation.
- Capability building: Pair new technology with orientation, supervised practice, licensing checks and a clear escalation path when a worker is not yet qualified for a task.
- Feedback: Compare planned labor hours, actual hours, incidents, rework and schedule performance, then adjust the standard work.
Digital formwork planning: a concrete example
The 2022 vendor article uses PERI QuickSolve as an example of digital formwork planning. It describes the tool as supporting digital concrete wall layouts, pour planning, formwork configuration proposals, parts lists and three-dimensional renderings. These capabilities illustrate the type of coordination a contractor may seek; the article is vendor-authored content, not a controlled evaluation proving a particular labor saving.
How the workflow can reduce avoidable site labor
- Define the wall and pour scope. Enter the geometry, heights, openings, pour sequence and project constraints that the design and site teams have approved.
- Review a proposed configuration. Check that panel dimensions, ties, corners, stop ends, platforms and handling points match the actual access and lifting plan.
- Use the parts list for logistics. Reconcile the proposed components with owned or rented inventory, delivery windows and storage space. A complete list can reduce the field time spent hunting for missing pieces.
- Check the three-dimensional view with the crew. A rendering gives an experienced supervisor and a new worker a shared visual reference before assembly starts. It does not replace the manufacturer’s instructions, engineering review or site-specific safety plan.
- Lock the pour sequence. Coordinate reinforcement, embeds, inspections, concrete delivery and stripping so a formwork crew is not waiting on another trade.
The labor benefit being pursued is coordination: fewer last-minute changes, less manual calculation and a shorter learning curve for a worker who can follow an approved visual plan. Actual results depend on project geometry, crew experience, equipment availability and how consistently the plan is used.
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Scaffold planning and resource visibility
The same vendor article describes PERIpath as a scaffold planning tool that organizes equipment needs, labor resources, schedules and costs. That combination matters because scaffold decisions are often made across several disciplines: a designer defines access, a site manager sequences work, a logistics team reserves equipment, and a commercial manager tracks cost.
Questions a scaffold plan should answer
- Which elevations and work faces require access, and for how long?
- What components, loading arrangements, ties and edge protections are required for the approved design?
- Which trained workers will erect, alter and inspect the scaffold?
- How does the scaffold installation fit around deliveries, crane operations, weather exposure and other trades?
- When can sections be released, adapted or returned so equipment is not occupying space or generating rental cost unnecessarily?
A planning system can make those dependencies visible before erection. It cannot determine a safe design without competent people, applicable regulations and project-specific engineering. Treat the named tool as an example of the planning category rather than as evidence that it is the best option for every contractor.
How to implement the approach on a real project
1. Establish a labor baseline
List the activities that drive the critical path and record planned crew size, skill requirements, shift pattern, setup and teardown hours, waiting time and rework. Separate productive installation from travel, material searching, equipment changeover and corrective work. This baseline lets a contractor test whether a new method changes the work rather than merely shifting hours to another activity.
2. Identify the binding constraint
Decide whether the immediate problem is headcount, a license, a scarce craft, supervision, access equipment, layout information or a handoff between trades. If the constraint is a missing license, buying software will not make an unqualified person competent. If the constraint is repeated layout changes, recruiting more labor may only put more people into an unstable process.
3. Standardize the information crews need
Choose one approved location and naming convention for current drawings, formwork or scaffold layouts, revisions, inspection records and delivery information. Assign responsibility for updating it. A digital plan that is out of date can increase risk because workers may follow a superseded configuration with confidence.
4. Select equipment and planning tools against the work
Ask suppliers to demonstrate the exact wall types, heights, access conditions or scaffold arrangements in the project. Confirm assembly instructions, allowable loads, inspection requirements, transport, storage, rental or purchase terms, and the training supplied. Evaluate the full system, not a software feature in isolation.
5. Pilot one repeatable work package
Start with a bounded sequence such as a set of similar wall pours or a defined elevation. Capture the planned labor hours, number of workers, setup duration, changes after the plan was issued, safety observations, rework and schedule adherence. A pilot produces project-specific evidence without committing every crew to an untested process.
6. Train for competence, not attendance
Use a short classroom or digital orientation followed by hands-on assembly, inspection and an observed task. Record who is authorized to perform each activity. Pair less experienced workers with a competent supervisor and stop work when the configuration, access or load path differs from the approved plan.
7. Review and scale
At the end of the pilot, compare actual results with the baseline and ask where hours moved. Did setup fall while engineering review increased? Did a faster assembly create more inspection work? Did fewer workers on the platform improve safety or create a material-handling bottleneck? Scale only the practices that improve the total process while meeting quality and safety requirements.
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The available evidence does not establish a winning vendor or technology. Use a project-specific scorecard instead. The following axes turn a sales demonstration into a defensible decision.
| Evaluation area | Questions to document |
|---|---|
| Project fit | Does the system handle the project’s geometry, repetition, height, access and weather conditions? |
| Safety and access | Are platforms, guardrails, ties, lifting points, inspection steps and emergency arrangements clear? |
| Assembly and learning | Can the intended crew understand the sequence, and what supervised practice or license is required? |
| Planning coordination | Can layouts, parts lists, schedules, labor resources and revisions be shared with the people who act on them? |
| Equipment and labor requirements | What must be purchased or rented, and what crew size and competencies are assumed? |
| Schedule effect | Does delivery, setup, adaptation and removal fit the critical path and other trades? |
| Total cost | Include engineering, training, transport, storage, rental or purchase, inspections, maintenance, software and the cost of delay or rework. |
Score each option with the same assumptions and keep the original schedule and labor baseline. That prevents a tool from appearing successful simply because the comparison used different crew sizes, project phases or definitions of “productivity.”
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Technology cannot replace workforce development
The AGC/NCCER finding that 57% of surveyed firms saw missing skills or licenses among available candidates points to a parallel investment: structured craft development. Build a skills matrix for each project, verify credentials before assignment, and reserve time for mentoring. Break complex activities into teachable modules—layout reading, component identification, safe handling, inspection and problem escalation—so a new worker can progress without being placed in an unsafe role.
Retention also affects labor efficiency. Predictable schedules, usable equipment, respectful supervision and a visible path to higher responsibility reduce the disruption caused by constant turnover. A modern approach measures whether the work method is sustainable for the people performing it, not only whether a short-term labor-hour target was met.
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Buying a tool before defining the problem
Symptom: The team has a new planning application but still waits for revisions, materials or access. Correction: Map the constraint first and require the proposed tool to address a specific delay or handoff.
Assuming a rendering is an approved design
Symptom: Crews assemble from a visualization without checking engineering, manufacturer instructions or current revisions. Correction: Mark the approved issue, retain the required calculations and make inspection a release point before use.
Ignoring the learning curve
Symptom: A new system is assigned to workers who have seen a presentation but have not demonstrated assembly or inspection competence. Correction: Provide hands-on practice, supervision and authorization records.
Counting only installation hours
Symptom: Reported labor falls, but engineering, logistics, rework or overtime rises elsewhere. Correction: Track total labor for the work package, plus quality, safety and schedule measures.
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Symptom: Figures from the 2022 vendor article are used as a 2026 market forecast. Correction: Label the source year and use the 2025 AGC/NCCER survey and the BLS 2025–2035 outlook for current context.
A practical checklist for the next labor-constrained project
- Identify the two or three activities most likely to delay the critical path.
- Document required skills, licenses, crew size, access and equipment for each activity.
- Establish a baseline for productive hours, setup, waiting, rework and safety observations.
- Issue one controlled digital plan for layouts, parts, sequence and revisions.
- Verify that proposed formwork or scaffold systems fit the geometry and access plan.
- Confirm supplier training, inspection duties, delivery, storage and rental or purchase assumptions.
- Pilot the method on a repeatable work package and record total-process results.
- Review the pilot with field supervisors and workers before scaling.
- Keep recruiting, licensing and mentoring programs active; technology works best when qualified people can use it.
Labor shortages are a capacity and coordination problem, not a single purchasing problem. The strongest response combines realistic workforce planning with digital preparation, safe and repeatable equipment systems, and measured training. Tools such as the QuickSolve and PERIpath examples show what that coordination can look like, while the contractor remains responsible for validating fit, safety, competence, cost and results on the actual project.
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