ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The release of the August job report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed a hiring slowdown across the country, but workers in the Tampa Bay area construction market feel that's not the case.
"It's a very funky job market right now, but I can tell you that there's no lack of construction jobs," saids Justin Appel, who was recently hired by American Housing Builders in Pinellas Park.
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The need for workers doesn't end with just builders. Masoners like Michael Rowe also have a need for more employees.
"I know like 5 or 6 construction companies that have been looking for help for months and can't get any help," says Rowe.
Rowe says it has been four years since his crew was fully staffed.
"The kids just don't want to come out and do construction is what it boils down to. To me, that's my opinion," Rowe said.
Appel was hired just a few months ago by Valerie McKenzie, the owner of American Housing Builders.
She says that homes needing repairs following last year's hurricane season led to construction jobs being in higher demand.
But she is receiving applications for jobs people are not qualified for.
"I get a lot of administrative applications where they'll tell me that they have certain skills, such as QuickBooks, and they don't necessarily have those skills," says McKenzie.
Dr. Michael Snipes says the numbers from the labor report tell a different story about what could happen in the future.
"I also looked at a different measure called labor force participation. And that's just the uh the percent of adults who are actively looking for a job," says Snipes, "That's been going down slightly. And again, these aren't big changes, but they could be something that could portend something bigger happening in the future."
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