The Associated General Contractors of America and its Texas chapters launched a new campaign today designed to highlight the many benefits of working on construction in the state. The new campaign, called “Texas Builds“, relies on testimonials from dozens of construction workers throughout Texas to highlight the industry’s commitment to safety and the many career opportunities that exist in the sector.
“What the men and women who work in construction across Texas have in common is a tremendous pride in the work they do and a real commitment to the safety of their co-workers,” said Brian Turmail, the association’s spokesman. “This campaign lets the state’s construction workers explain the benefits of working in an industry that pays better than most and is improving safety faster than most other states.”
The national association and its chapters created the “Texas Builds” campaign to help improve the image of an industry that continues to struggle with labor shortages. As part of the association’s annual Construction Hiring and Business Outlook released earlier this year, nearly two-thirds of Texas contractors reported they are having a hard time finding enough qualified people to hire. Association officials said one reason for the worker shortages is that too few young people view construction as a viable career choice.
The main element of the “Texas Builds” campaign are a series of videos highlighting different aspects of working in the Texas construction industry. The videos feature English and Spanish language testimonials from dozens of construction workers throughout the state. One video provides a brief overview of the industry, a second highlights career opportunities and a third focuses on steps construction workers and their firms take to ensure the safety and health of workers. The final video takes a comprehensive look at the construction industry in Texas.
In addition to the video, the campaign website, www.agc.org/TexasBuilds, includes an analysis of pay rates by construction craft and also cites federal data showing the industry’s pay levels are 10 percent higher in Texas than the average non-farm job in the state. The site also notes that Texas had the 13th largest decline in construction fatality rates of any state between 2008 and 2014 and the third lowest construction injury rate of any state in 2014, the most recent year for which data is available.
The association said that as part of the campaign it will be distributing links to the video and campaign site via email, social media and paid advertising. The association’s state chapters and member firms will be sending information about the campaign to their lists of contacts throughout the state and post information about Texas Builds to their various social media sites. In addition, the national association and its chapters will be placing digital ads linking back to the campaign as a way to raise awareness about the information highlighted in the videos and on the website.
“For too long, this industry has been defined by outsiders’ mistaken impressions of what it is like to work in construction in Texas,” said Turmail. “The idea with this campaign is to give construction workers an opportunity to share their success stories, brag about what they have accomplished and make it clear that working in construction is a high-paying, rewarding career opportunity others ought to consider.”
