NORFOLK, Va. — The Association of General Contractors of America says demand and new construction hiring in Hampton Roads is booming. Chief Economist Ken Simonson said the rate of growth for construction positions puts Hampton Roads among the top 10 areas in the country.
“The Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Newport News metro area added 4,500 construction jobs between September 2023 and last month. Putting it among the top metros nationwide for job increase in the sector,” Simonson said at a press conference on Tuesday.
With national labor shortages in construction, Hampton Roads companies are ramping up their recruiting efforts. Ron Lauster, the president of local construction company WM Jordan, said changing those numbers starts locally. His team is overseeing the expansion of the Half Moon Cruise Terminal in Norfolk.
"This exciting $9.3 million project for the City of Norfolk will allow the city to better serve. their clients,” Lauster said.
The project will expand capabilities and waiting spaces in the cruise ship terminal. Lauster said the project is another example of how the construction industry is hungry for workers.
"People want to learn a skill, people want to learn to train. People want to be taught something, they want to be valued, they want to work hard during the day. and there are a lot of organizations here, companies that will train them," Lauster said.
The most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics showed 282,000 construction job openings across the nation as of September of this year.
Simonson said programs from the association like Culture of Care a program aimed at retention is one of the ways the industry is planning to evolve and grow in the future.