Cedar Rapids developers: Immigration, worker incentives need fixing

CEDAR RAPIDS — While inflation and supply backlogs costs threaten the ability of new development projects to get off the ground, local construction and development professionals say finding skilled construction workers will challenge Iowa for decades to come.

As some changes to how Iowans work are here to stay as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, panelists participating this week in a session of The Gazette’s annual Iowa Ideas conference said employers have to explore new strategies to keep construction moving. That includes new incentives to attract and retain workers, as well as being more open to finding legal pathways for immigrants to work.

“Our challenge is going to continue to be staffing,” said Kelly Edmonds, president of Cedar Rapids-based Merit Construction. “It is harder and harder to find people, skilled tradesmen, to be able to build these things. And that's just going to get harder and harder.”

With millions of baby boomers retiring, he said the construction industry will have to contend with many experienced workers leaving the workforce. But for young workers, he said there’s been a negative stigma dissuading people from working in the trades, with the perception that the positions are lower-paying blue-collar jobs.

Workers also are becoming more reluctant to even venture to nearby cities — such as going to Iowa City for construction jobs if they’re based in Cedar Rapids — Edmonds said. So Merit has started to reimburse for mileage and offered more flexibility in the days workers are scheduled.

Edmonds said his employee-owned company is enticing workers with more of an investment in amenities — not only higher pay, but tuition assistance, clothing allowances and more team activities to “build more of that family environment and create some loyalty.”

“Our standards, I guess, have decreased in the existing knowledge of people when they come on board,” Edmonds said. “If someone has the drive, work ethic and reliable transportation, shows up on time, we can train and we'll make that investment to do so.”

Steve Emerson, a Cedar Rapids developer and president of architecture company Aspect Inc., said the cost of staff is rising dramatically.

“You try hiring somebody, their expectations right out of school — it makes me blush because it's like, 'Gosh, when I was out of school, I made a quarter of that,’” Emerson said. “It's crazy. And everybody, to hold onto your staff, you've got to be creative — not just with money, but you’ve got to make it a place they don't want to leave.”

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Chad Pelley, a Marion-based developer with Twenty40 Building Concepts, said it seems likely the future will involve employers having to train employees better to meet the business’ needs — rather than expecting the worker to have all necessary training to qualify for the job.

Pelley said his company moved to a four-day workweek of 36 hours a week while paying people for 40 hours. There’s a gym in the new office space and more flexibility with the hours worked so employees can tend to other aspects of their lives.

As men aged 25 to 40 have dropped out of the workforce, Pelley said, it’ll take a toll on the workforce if immigration policies are not aligned to labor needs.

According to the American Immigration Council’s analysis of 2018 U.S. Census Bureau data, 126,469 immigrant workers made up 7 percent of Iowa’s labor force in 2018.

“That's a no brainer,” Pelley said of the need to change immigration policy. “ … If there's one item that the two sides can agree on, it should be that.”

He said Kirkwood Community College’s earn-and-learn programs have helped immigrants work while navigating language barriers.

“I don't know how to say this politely, Americans are lazy, it seems,” Pelley said, and these training programs help encourage immigrants’ participation in the workforce.

Edmonds said his company is paying a premium to attract bilingual field leaders who can break language barriers with Spanish-speaking workers, advertising in West Liberty where many Hispanic employees work at a turkey processing facility.

Policymakers need to talk to “people like us there on the ground” to enact less divisive immigration policies or see the issue as “us versus them.”

“I could sit here and say (immigration) needs to be regulated obviously, but just to say, ‘Close the border, build a wall,’ that's not helpful,” Edmonds said. “People are still going to come here, they're going to sneak on job sites, they're going to work and get paid cash under the table and the government's not going to collect any taxes. Meanwhile, the industry will benefit but our society won't.”

Ten years ago, Emerson said there was pride with using union labor in town and there was more competition or backlash to using Spanish-speaking, immigrant crews.

“Now, there's just frankly not enough people that want to work,” Emerson said. “You go to my construction sites right now, literally half the people are Honduran or wherever and it's great. I appreciate that and I love that you’ve got these other people that want to work when, frankly … the American guys are sitting at home, don't want to work …”

Making sure immigrants can effectively contribute to the workforce through programs that can teach them language skills or legally allowing them to work “rather than forcing them to sneak around and sneak on sites” would help address Iowa’s worker shortage, Emerson said.

“If there's a way to do that and get the work done, that's great,” Emerson said. “It's not as important right now, but when the boomers start retiring, that's going to hurt worse.”

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