What Do Construction Workers Really Want? A Study about Representation, Importance, and Perception of US Construction Occupational Rewards

Abstract

The construction industry in the United States employs thousands of workers in various jobs and accounted for over $645 billion of the US Gross Domestic Product in 2017. Given the reported labor shortage, it has never been more important for the construction industry to have a qualified and motivated workforce. To do so, the industry needs to understand the current status of occupational rewards and how they are being perceived by construction workers. This paper describes research that aims to address this issue by investigating workers’ perspectives of occupational rewards in the construction industry. The study utilizes responses from 176 construction workers across different states, different job responsibilities, and different work conditions. The research contributes to the construction industry by providing a unique perspective on occupational rewards through the lens of construction workers. The study identifies the rewards that are available to workers, rewards that are needed by workers, and factors that impact workers’ reward satisfaction. By understanding these three aspects of occupational rewards, the industry will have a better chance of attracting and retaining the right workers for the job and motivating the available workforce for the allocated tasks. The study also contributes to the body of knowledge by facilitating a new and holistic view of rewards and the factors influencing rewards in construction. Findings from the research indicate that workers in general, are satisfied with the rewards that they are receiving, where job responsibility was found to be the reward that is received the most. However, workers’ needs showed a commonality of financial importance. Furthermore, reward satisfaction was found to be influenced by 11 factors, 8 of which are occupational, and 3 sociodemographic factors.