Higher Cabling Costs; Electrician ShortageHigher Cabling Costs; Electrician Shortage

Last year in March 2007 I posted a blog, "Another Hit to the Cabling Budget; Electrician Shortage = Higher cabling Costs" at . In that blog I wrote "By 2014, the U.S. requirement for electrical workers will increase to more than 734,000. This is a figure of 78,000 more electricians then are currently employed in the field."

Last year in March 2007 I posted a blog, "Another Hit to the Cabling Budget; Electrician Shortage = Higher cabling Costs" at . In that blog I wrote "By 2014, the U.S. requirement for electrical workers will increase to more than 734,000. This is a figure of 78,000 more electricians then are currently employed in the field."Enterprise IT and facility departments commonly outsource cabling installations. They do not typically follow the cabling market until new cabling is required. Even then, the idea of an installer shortage never comes up on their radar.

Part of this shortage directly affects the data and telephone cabling enterprise installations. The shortage will raise the cost of cabling installation and delay the implementation of the cabling projects. It turns out the shortage is getting worse.

First, the existing worker population is aging and will be retiring faster than their replacements will be trained. Second, the new high tech demands, as cables carry more speed and power, are producing a different shortage, that of knowledge and experience.

The number of electrical and power line workers is expected to reach 877,000 by 2016, more than predicted in 2006/07. This is an increase of 60,000 jobs beyond the 2006 level of 817,000. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported these figures in its 2008-2009 Occupational Outlook Handbook, released online in December 2007, with the print version available by this spring.

The U.S. Department of Labor predicts that the U.S. will need to train more than 270,000 new electrical and power line workers by 2016. An annual average of 27,000 new electricians will be necessary to accommodate growth in the industry between 2006 and 2016. Part of the growth is required to replace those leaving the workforce. The present turnover rate is nearly 27% of the workforce.

The president of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), Ed Hill is quoted as saying "It's imperative that we recruit and train the next generation of electricians today, because many electrical jobs require years of classroom and hands-on training before the necessary levels of worker quality and safety can be achieved. And being taught by experienced craftsmen is by far the best way to convey those skills."

The president of the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), E. Milner Irvin, stated "The need for skilled electrical workers to meet the growing demands of our high-tech society is a concern that cuts across geographical borders. That's why IBEW and NECA are actively recruiting new workers nationwide, using tools such as job fairs, DVDs, websites, even sponsoring a NASCAR racer to alert young people to the job opportunities in our industry. Through our National Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee, we offer young people the unmatched educational resources of America's largest electrical training program. This is the chance to join the best-trained, most up-to-date electrical apprentices and journeymen in the country."

So what should the enterprise do?

1. Schedule your cable installations early in the project. 2. Do not expect changes in scheduled cabling arrangements to be completed rapidly. 3. Expect to pay more for the cabling installation. 4. Try and future proof your cabling as much as possible. 5. Ensure that the new cabling can handle the increased Power over Ethernet (PoE) standard IEEE 802.3at. 6. Expect that there will more devices at the end of the Ethernet cables such as WLAN access points, security cameras with motors, environmental controls, security access devices and even Ethernet clocks.