wm brand Cost Insights

Intelligence for energy companies seeking a data-driven approach to cost management

The Impact of Biden's Infrastructure Bill on a Constrained Labor Market

May 27, 2021 at 4:14 PM / by Wood Mackenzie Supply Chain

The US construction sector is facing a confluence of supply chain disruptionscost increases, and worker shortages as the economic recovery from the pandemic acceleratesNow, President Biden’s proposed plan to invest $2T over 8 years in infrastructure could further boost demand for construction services, putting even more pressure on the limited labor supplies providing services to energy firms. 

PowerAdvocate’s analysis of the proposed investments in roads, bridges, power transmission networks, and other physical infrastructure shows that higher demand will impact some craft labor types more than others. As the chart shows, demand is expected to exceed supply for several key crafts in the first year of the plan, with heavy equipment operators and electrical power line installers seeing the severest shortagesBoth crafts saw minimal job losses in 2020 amid pandemic-related work stoppages and are currently near full capacity with few qualified workers remaining joblessMeanwhile, both will see significantly higher demand if the infrastructure bill passes CongressAt a national level, PowerAdvocate forecasts that construction sector employers could face a shortage of 27,000 heavy equipment operators, or nearly 7% of the currently employed labor force of 405,000. For electrical power line installers, we forecast a shortage of 21,000 workers, or 18% of the current labor force of 114,000.  

Labor shortages are a major risk for energy firms, impacting everything from costs, to safety, to project continuity. PowerAdvocate works with firms to quantify their exposure to these shortages and execute key supply chain strategies to mitigate the risk, including managing demand, improving supplier productivity, and enhancing volume commitments. 

To request more information, please fill out the form to the right and don't hesitate to contact us at  costinsights@poweradvocate.com.

Subscribe to Cost Insights

Join thousands of energy industry leaders and receive regular insights to help your organization manage costs more intelligently

Submit to request more information: