US Construction Handcuffed By Lack Of Skilled Laborers -- CNBC, July 17, 2015

I've seen variations of this same story some years ago, or maybe it was last year.

This is an important story, assuming that it's accurate. It says much about the current state of affairs in the United States. I've maintained that 8% unemployment is the new "full employment number" versus the historical definition of "full employment" being 4%. There are at least three data points that make 4% unemployment in 1950 a lot different than 8% unemployment in 2015:

• the safety net is so much better in 2015
• tectonic shifts in productivity gains due to technology has greatly changed the employment landscape
• the underground, unreported "Greek" economy in the US

So, here's the story that got me thinking about this again. CNBC is reporting that homebuilders are having difficulty finding laborers:

Single-family home construction fell to a three-month low in June, which is usually the busiest time for homebuilding. Even building permits are not showing signs of robust growth. Builders claim there is good demand, but they complain they're handcuffed by a lack of skilled labor to build new homes.

The builders' industry trade group calls the incidence of labor shortages nationwide "surprisingly high," given the fact that homebuilding has barely recovered from its 2008 crash.

"In fact, the 9-trade shortage is now substantially higher than it was at the peak of the 2004-2005 boom, when annual starts were averaging around 2 million, compared to current rates of about one million," economist Paul Emrath of the National Association of Home Builders wrote in a recent report.

Nine-trade refers to the various skills required for homebuilding, such as concrete pouring and carpentry.

"The last time builder-reported labor shortages were as widespread as now was just before 2001 during a prolonged period of strong GDP growth with overall unemployment as low as 4 percent," he added.

Unemployment in the construction industry fell in June to the lowest level since 2001. That's because contractors are having a hard time finding enough qualified workers to meet growing demand

The article goes on with explanations for the labor shortage:

• undocumented immigrant laborers nowhere to be found
• all that government money spent on training and education in high schools has been ineffective

But if one reads closely, the labor shortage sounds regional.

My point is this: if many of the folks who are unemployed really, really wanted to work, there are many, many opportunities. I doubt it takes more than 6 months for minimum training for some of those "9-trade" skills to get to at least an apprentice level. If you doubt me, watch the "oilmen" video posted on July 15, 2015 -- just two days ago. When you get to the "oilmen" video at the bottom of the post, scroll forward to 2:30 (2 minutes, 30 seconds) to find out how much training is required when the job needs to get done.