A recent study shows that construction is a desirable career path for young people, as the industry faces a skills shortage.
New research by construction data platform NBS asked 2,000 18-29-year olds in the UK for their opinions on the construction sector. 56% said that construction is an ‘attractive’ career path, and 31% said they wanted to build a ‘better physical world’ through careers in construction.
The research also showed that attitudes towards women in construction are changing, with a fifth of female respondents saying they are very interested in a construction role. 57% of women also stated that they considered construction to be generally a ‘diverse’ industry – reflecting the sector’s recent efforts to be more inclusive.
Engineering was ranked as one of the most sought-after jobs by young people, second only to healthcare professionals, and outranking legal professionals, designer and social media influencers.
However, while there may be an appetite among young people to join the construction sector, there are significant challenges facing the next generation. A study carried out by the Association of Colleges in summer 2022 found that 85% of British colleges were understaffed for higher-level construction courses. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), there were more than 42,000 job vacancies in the construction industry as of July 2022.
Russell Haworth CEO of NBS, said: “It’s clear that perceptions around construction are changing. Young people now realise it’s not the dull, dangerous and dirty job as mislabelled for years by educators and career advisors. It’s great to see such an uptick in interest following some very lean years recruitment-wise. The challenge for the sector now is to jump on this opportunity, we must not miss it as has previously been the case.”
How Wienerberger supports the next generation
We know that apprentices are the future of Wienerberger. Our apprenticeship programme provides the opportunity to earn while you learn and gain valuable industry experience while working towards a specialist qualification.
Find out more about Wienerberger apprenticeships.
