The Hidden Struggle: Why Hiring Specialty Trade Labor is So Hard in U.S. Construction

If you’ve tried hiring skilled specialty trade workers in the construction industry lately, you know just how difficult it’s become. At Vest Social, we live and breathe this industry—and we're seeing the same thing across every job board, subcontractor meeting, and general contractor group chat: there just aren’t enough people to go around.

But it’s not just a labor shortage. It's deeper than that. It’s a communication problem. A tech gap. A language barrier. And it's costing contractors time, money, and sanity.

Skilled, But Unreachable

There’s a massive pool of hardworking, skilled tradespeople—masons, electricians, drywallers, welders, and painters—who aren’t easily reachable with today's hiring methods. Most don’t live on LinkedIn. They’re not refreshing Indeed. Many don’t speak English as their first language. So when you post a job, it might never even reach the people best suited for the work.

Spanish-speaking crews make up a huge percentage of the field workforce, yet most hiring tools assume fluent English. That disconnect creates friction. It leads to jobs going unfilled. Or worse—getting filled with whoever happened to see the listing, not the best person for the job.

Tech Doesn’t Speak Trade

Another challenge? Most platforms weren’t built for construction. They don’t understand the day-to-day grind of the trades, the short turnaround times, or the need for “someone who can start Monday.” Job titles and descriptions feel generic. Calendars and pay systems feel off. And features? Usually designed with office jobs in mind.

For the trades, this just doesn’t work. If a platform isn’t fast, mobile, and intuitive, it won’t get used—by either side.

So What’s the Solution?

We built Vest Social to fix this. It’s a construction-first platform, built for real people in the trades—whether you’re a solo painter with your own truck or a 30-person framing crew. It supports both English and Spanish. It’s mobile-first. And it’s designed to help contractors connect directly with specialty labor and service providers in their area.

Our mission is simple: make hiring in construction less painful, and bring the right people together, faster.

Want to see what the future of construction networking looks like? Download the Vest app today for free.