Talk to 10 people about their careers and the majority of them will say that good jobs are hard to come by.
However, in places around the country like New York where construction building has skyrocketed, the construction industry is now petitioning the city to change safety regulations that have halted hundreds of jobs.
Industry leaders say construction in places like New York are in a boom cycle. However, projects literally are stopped in their tracts or can’t get started due to safety regulations requiring inspectors to be on site for all buildings over 15 stories.
The problem with that is that applicants who have the required background as a construction supervisor come few and far in between.
The Department of Buildings (DOB) says there are only about 500 active inspectors.
The shortage, according to some construction industry leaders, may be partially to blame when two construction firms made the news last month after they were slapped with criminal charges for hiring hairdressers and cooks to pose as licensed professionals.
As a potential solution, the New York City Special Riggers Association, is working on drafting a memo with the DOB, which licenses managers, to undo code changes created in 2008 that added supervisors to restoration projects. Previously they were only needed at new jobs.
The DOB says that the department is aware of the need for an increase for site safety inspectors, but any changes will have to go through the city council for approval.
