Announced by the Power & Communication Contractors Association (PCCA) and the Fiber Broadband Association (FBA), the study was conducted by Continuum Capital, an independent consulting firm, and includes a state-by-state breakdown of broadband funding, workforce numbers, and wage rates.
The study predicts that the amount of federal and state broadband funding will exceed the engineering, permitting, locating, and construction workforce capacity to absorb it, therefore causing bottlenecks. The research says that construction activity supported by federal and state funding will be pushed two to three years into the future, exposing some of this money to its expiration date and complicating construction overall.
To avoid delays, the study says that 28,000 more broadband construction workers and 30,000 more broadband technician workers are needed to execute the current amount of planned federal and state broadband funding. The research predicts that an additional 119,200 construction and technician workers will be needed over the next 10 years to compensate for retirement and attrition.
The study also notes that additional workforce growth will be needed for ongoing and routine broadband construction, attachment, and maintenance activities. These needs are on top of the drafting, design, and engineering resource needs that were not specifically studied but represent a bottleneck before infrastructure can be released for construction. The use of design-build and/or turnkey delivery systems will likely accelerate to compensate for these bottlenecks and delays.
“This research confirms what our members have been telling us for years,” PCCA President & CEO Tim Wagner said. “In 2016, the PCCA Board identified the shortage of workers in broadband construction as the largest obstacle our members faced, and a subsequent membership survey showed that contractors were short 10 to 17 crews per company. The tremendous influx of public money since 2016 has only exacerbated the problem. This study from Continuum Capital shines a light on the true size of the problem, and we firmly believe there is not just one solution. PCCA has implemented myriad strategies over the past decade, including partnering with technical/community colleges on utility technician programs, registered apprenticeships through TIRAP, a returning veteran program through the Learning Alliance, working with state broadband offices, and outreach through a series of social media videos. Much work remains, and our members are committed to finding solutions.”
“It is certainly an exciting time for the broadband industry as approvals for federal and state funding are announced weekly. However, without the proper workforce levels, bottlenecks will choke and slow broadband deployment processes in unanticipated ways,” FBA Vice President of Research and Workforce Development Deborah Kish said.
Access the study at www.pccaweb.org/BroadbandWorkforceStudy.
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About the Power & Communication Contractors Association
The Power & Communication Contractors Association (PCCA) is the national trade association for companies constructing electric power facilities, including transmission and distribution lines and substations, and broadband systems. Since its founding in 1945, membership has grown to include hundreds of companies located throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Learn more at www.pccaweb.org.
About the Fiber Broadband Association
The Fiber Broadband Association (FBA) is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. FBA helps providers, communities, and policymakers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.