Training of Construction Workers in Pakistan

Abstract

Pakistan’s construction Industry, in spite of its sizable share in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and its fairly large contribution towards employment generation, remains neglected especially when it comes to skill development of its workers. Literature review confirms that stakeholders fail to contribute to the development of construction workers due to the ambiguities regarding their responsibilities. Literature review shows that construction enterprises in Pakistan remain distanced from modern HR practice and therefore do not consider about investment on development of their human resource. Reports and papers by various authors also verify that illiteracy and skill deficiencies in construction craftsmen lead to issues like low productivity, poor workmanship/quality, wastages/re-work, poor health and safety record, high turnover rate, inequitable compensation to the employees, lack of employment opportunities abroad, lack of skills to use of technology and many more, effecting all stake holders. Unfortunately, all problems remain undocumented. Study shows that developed countries have formulated elaborate systems of training their construction workers to support increasing demand of knowledge, skills and abilities. Following footsteps of modern world construction Industry in countries like Malaysia and Singapore is also doing well in developing their workforce. The construction industry of Pakistan, with a large and young labour force, has a lot potential to grow. It is recommended that Pakistan must develop its construction industry by following the global best practices regarding training of construction workers keeping in view local environment.