b'CONSTRUCTION FORECASTContinued from page 35wages to attract sufficient workers. Wage andmanufacturing, logistics, or of course, construction. salary income growth has been strong, fueled byIn the absence of very deep economic downturns, a tight labor market, said Hoyt. Were expectingcontractors will continue to be scrambling for talent it to increase just a shade over 5% both for 2023and that will push wages higher.and 2024. In 2022 the growth was a little over 8%. While employers never like having to raise wages, Reinforcingtheestimatesoftheeconomists,putting a cap on paychecks has taken a back seat Palisin said his members have had to hike theirto a more urgent concern: keeping valuable talent compensationtoremaincompetitiveamongfrom jumping ship. The big question now is not themselvesandothereconomicsectors. Theso much who can pay the most for entry-level groups entry level hourly wages increased anand skilled jobs, but what can they do to retain eye-popping 8% to 10% in both 2022 and 2023, farthese folks within their companies, said Palisin. higher than the historic average of 2.5% to 3.0%. Manufacturing in the US over the last year has Problem No. 2 is a scarcity of workers. Based oncontinued to hire pretty significantly, and were not survey data, the number one issue for constructionseeing a lot of layoffs, so that tells you that many firms continues to be the inadequate supply of skilledcompanies are hoarding talent. Employers are fine workers, said Basu. Thats not just a function oftooling their operations in the areas of workplace the fact that the U.S. economy came screaming outflexibility, benefits, and culture changes.of the pandemic in the form of a V-shape recovery.Housing marketsIts a long term, structural, demographic issueGiven the generally upbeat consumer sentiment, that transcends business cycles. America simplyprospects are good for the housing sector, an does not produce enough skilled craftspeople, andimportant driver of the overall economy. New home this impacts various industries, whether energy, Continued on page 3736 www.mrca.orgMidwest Roofer'