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S P R I N G 2 0 2 3 / W O R K F O R M E 9 potential workers from, say, a career and technical education center into the actual workforce and on a jobsite. This program is designed to fill that gap." Construction Academy class- es are free, and every student receives a free pair of heavy work boots valued at $200, she adds. That's how badly the in- dustry wants people to sign up. Pervasive need Virtually every construction firm in the state is actively searching for workers, says Robin Wood, director of human resources at Reed & Reed Inc. in Woolwich. The 95-year-old firm builds ev- erything from cable bridges to industrial facilities, marine ter- minals and wind farms. "It's a real struggle, and we are all competing for the same labor force," Wood says. "We all have positions available that we are unable to fill. The ability to hire can and does directly determine the amount of work companies are able to bid on." Demand for workers is the strongest Wood has ever seen. Despite construction work being deemed essential in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, contractors still had difficulty finding and hiring enough em- ployees, she says. "Now, three years later, we're still trying to figure out where all the workers went," says Wood. "If we want them, we're going to have to train them ourselves, and we are geared up and ready for this challenge." The question of how to re- cruit more workers tends to dominate office conversations lately, says Jonathan Smith, president of Great Falls Con- s t r u c t i o n i n G o r h a m . T h e 65-employee firm specializes in residential, commercial and municipal buildings, including C O N T I N U E D O N F O L LO W I N G PAG E » AUBURN • BANGOR • BAR HARBOR • BELFAST •BELGRADE BLUE HILL • BOOTHBAY HARBOR • BRUNSWICK • BUCKSPORT CALAIS • CAMDEN • CHERRYFIELD • DAMARISCOTTA • ELLSWORTH FAIRFIELD • FARMINGTON • GREENVILLE • MACHIAS • PORTLAND ROCHESTER (NH) • ROCKLAND • SKOWHEGAN Hammond Lumber Company was founded in 1953 by Skip and Verna Hammond with a single sawmill in Belgrade, Maine. Today, the fourth-generation, family-owned is one of the largest independent lumber and building material retailers in the northeast with over 900 employees and 22 locations across Maine and New Hampshire. We're always interested in hiring great people to join our team! We have positions in sales, logistics, drafting & design, accounting, information technology, human resources, management, and more. We'll provide the training you need, and we o ffer great job perks, including: • Training and Career Development Opportunities • Health, Dental, Short-term-disability, and Life Insurance • 401(k) Plan & Company Match • Flexible Spending Accounts • Paid Time Off, Paid Holidays • Employee Assistance Program • Employee Referral Program • Employee Discount on Building Materials 22 Locations Across Maine & New Hampshire C o n s t r u c t i o n / T r a d e s BY T H E N U M B E R S Construction contributed $2.6 billion (3.4%) of Maine's GDP of $76.1 billion in 2021. Private, nonresidential construction spending in Maine totaled $1.2 billion in 2021. State and local spending totaled $1.4 billion. (Totals aren't available for residential, railroad, power, communication or federal construction.) Construction employment in Maine totaled 32,200 in December 2022, a decrease of 300 (-0.9%) from December 2021 and an increase of 1,500 (4.9%) from February 2020. In Maine, four of the five most numerous construction occupations had median annual pay exceeding $48,000 in 2021. (Half of workers earned more than the median; half earned less.) S O U R C E S : Associated General Contractors of America; U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics