Let’s tell our apprentices they’re hired

There is no shortage of people training to work in construction, but the lack of a clear career path means many never make it on site, says Simon Hay of the Brick Development Association.

The need for greater numbers of skilled tradespeople in the construction sector is widely recognised. The brick industry is at the forefront of this debate, particularly as, in the national press, “brick” has become shorthand for “construction products” and “bricklayers” for “construction industry workers”.

Despite the headlines, however, the housebuilding industry still managed to build 10,000 more houses in 2014 than in the previous year – a 7 % rise (as shown by completion statistics from the Construction Products Association).

There has been a lot of noise about the difficulty of recruiting bricklayers to sites, yet there is little documented evidence to support this view. Indeed, some industry commentators – Mark Clare, outgoing group chief executive of Barratt Developments in his February review of the market, for example – recognise that the acute shortage is now easing.

Short-term fixes are addressing the immediate problem. Membership of the European Union provides free movement of labour and materials, and the construction sector can turn to imports while it rebuilds the resources shattered by a prolonged, deep recession in the UK.   

Migration pattern

This is not a new situation. The CIOB’s report on the use of migrant workers, published in March, pointed out that migrant labour has traditionally been a vital part of the UK construction industry.

However, our habit of hoovering up the skilled workforces of countries that endure less economic stability and prosperity than our own is hardly a long-term solution. The UK industry must look to its own resources to improve the recruitment, retention and training of skilled workers.

Our colleges report that there is no shortage of teenagers applying for apprenticeships and training places. The real difficulty lies with a lack of employers that are prepared to make the commitment to support the trainee.

The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) has estimated that we need around 3,000 new bricklayers to enter the industry each year to meet predicted demand. The combination of apprentices, technical certificate holders and diploma students emerging from training each year can easily meet that demand: it is thought around 2,000 students leave further education colleges each year with a technical diploma in bricklaying, while a further 2,100 individuals took up a bricklaying apprenticeship in 2013.

However, there is no easily established route for employers and colleges to work together to provide opportunities for these young trainees. Many drift away from the industry altogether, disillusioned that their commitment in completing their training has not led to employment in the sector of their choice.

It was in recognition of this waste of training investment that the Brick Development Association launched its #LoveBrick initiative last year. This programme involved a series of FE college visits designed to introduce contractors directly to college tutors and students, with a view to creating a mutually beneficial relationship and a potential route to employment for college leavers.

This small step is a practical response to a situation where desperately needed training is going to waste.

A sustainable long-term solution to the shortage of all trade skills still needs to be found. We urge the new Conservative government to address these issues:

• Increase the funding available to employers to support apprentices.
• Ensure that apprenticeships focus on the practical skills required to do the job, recognising that a skilled trade calls for different aptitude than that required to pass exams – different, not second class.
• Make a commitment to apprenticeships a prerequisite for companies tendering for publicly funded work contracts and for housebuilders benefiting from Help to Buy support.
• Ensure schools are rewarded for the number of school leavers achieving an apprenticeship in the same way that they are rewarded for A-level passes and university places.
• Encourage industry practitioners to engage directly with schools and colleges to spread an understanding of the diverse opportunities provided by a vibrant and rewarding construction industry.

Flexible and friendly

One final thought: our industry relies on flexible working. The Association of Bricklaying Contractors (ABC) estimates that 70% of bricklayers are self-employed. That is great for contractors in recessions, as it is easy to reduce overheads. The downside is that a self-employed skilled worker has no incentive to be loyal.

But feedback from many ABC members suggests they are not finding any extreme difficulty in recruiting or retaining regular bricklayers, who make up 30% of the total pool. So perhaps some of the organisations complaining most loudly about the difficulty of finding skilled workers should consider the conditions they are offering them.

Simon Hay is CEO of the Brick Development Association