Upfront Thoughts (some radical) on the labor shortage A LEBHAR-FRIEDMAN® PUBLICATION 425 Park Ave., New York, N.Y. 10022 212-756-5000 EDITORIAL OFFICES Headquarters/Eastern States 425 Park Ave., New York, N.Y. 10022 212-756-5000 Ken Clark (-5139), [email protected] — Jaclyn Bertner Felber (-5140), [email protected] — Steph Koyfman (-5244), [email protected] Editorial Inquiries: “Naught without labor.” That was one of the key super-secret- ritual themes of my cloak-and-dagger college fraternity (from which I’ll prob- ably be expelled now that I revealed it). And it’s also one of the major themes of the year that was 2014. Wherever the hardware and building supply industry met, there was talk of the exodus of construction workers, and the oil industry’s thirst for drivers and crews. The naught-without-labor theme played out at the 2014 ProDealer In- dustry Summit in San Diego. A careful review of my editor’s notebook reveals a A lumberyard in Houston broadcasts the sign of the times. host of labor-shortage related ideas. “If you pay them enough, oil workers will Company, based in Caribou, Maine, has been come back to Phoenix, right?” asked True Carr, actively engaged in local colleges to build a general manager of Alliance Lumber, based in pipeline of talent. Phoenix. “This is certainly a challenge,” said Collins. He was joking. But he was serious when he “But it’s not just our industry. There a lot of said, “We have 277 passionate employees and industries with aging work forces that need 47 inmates.” to recruit younger people. We have to make Through an Arizona prison-employment it appealing to the younger worker and figure program, the inmates help plug the labor out how to do that. We don’t necessarily look shortage and bring advantages to the yard and for someone who is experienced; we look for the community. someone who has aptitude and attitude.” Carr explained: “It helps them pay their The shortage is affecting contractor custom- child support. It gives them some money when ers even more. And that will have an impact on they get out of prison. Their worst day is a Fri- how yards grow, said Chris Yenrick, president day because they know they’re going to spend of Smith Phillips Building Supply in Winston- their next two days [in prison]. They’re a good Salem, North Carolina. example for other crews because they want to “Some of the custom building guys are fight- come out every Monday to work in our yard. ing for trim crews, and fighting for framing So it’s been a good combination for us, and crews. Installed sales is something that we’ve only we’re thinking of expanding on that next year.” dabbled in, but now we’re seeing a lot more of Prison labor was one idea. There were others our builders are wanting those services.” less radical. While the shortages are real, Randy Aardema, Sam Collins, president of S.W. Collins senior VP logistics at US LBM Holdings, believes the building supply business has a trump card: “This is a marvelous industry, and I think people Got an opinion on the labor shortage? are going to gravitate toward this business.” Send it to [email protected] It attracted us, right? [email protected] 10 NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014 ADVERTISING SALES/PRODUCTION Jim Lynch (-5059), [email protected] Theresa Nicosia (-5033), [email protected] New England 425 Park Ave., New York, N.Y. 10022 Midwest & Southeastern States Amy Platter, (773-294-8598), [email protected] Greg Cole, (317-775-2206), [email protected] Stefani Hernandez, (813-627-6965), [email protected] Lynn Bushell, [email protected] (813-381-3585) Japan Sadao Masujima Spain Miguel de Haro Jaime de Haro Home Improvement Research Institute Fred Miller Diane Noel Angie R. Angel Christina Sacher-Brown LEBHAR-FRIEDMAN, INC. Arnold D. Friedman J. Roger Friedman Randall Friedman Mike Sogan John Kenlon Jack Brannigan, [email protected] Lynn Bushell Permissions: HOMECHANNELNEWS.COM