State of Training in the Dirt World

We asked over 600 Dirt World workers about their jobs, work satisfaction, training, and career development. They gave us loads of insight into what they want—and how that’s different than what they get. 

Hopefully, this information will help you better understand how workforce development can improve across the industry. With that said, let’s hear from the workers.

Dirt World workers are pretty satisfied with their jobs ... but things could be better

Let’s start with the good news: Half of the workers we surveyed were very satisfied with their jobs. But what’s the rest of the story?

First of all, satisfaction could be better across the board—especially for the 15% of people who are dissatisfied at work.

Dissatisfied workers are more likely to be site laborers. In fact, there’s a huge discrepancy in satisfaction between labor and leadership. Over 60% of executives are very satisfied with their jobs. But for field workers, that number drops to just 36%.

Dirt World workers would be more satisfied with more money and training, among other things

When we asked workers what would satisfy them, they didn’t make any crazy demands. In fact, the answers were downright simple:

Let’s dig deeper into the three most-desired improvements: salary, training, and other.

Salary

Salary is one huge reason for high turnover in the Dirt World. That may sound strange since yearly salaries for construction and extraction workers were $2,450 higher than the national median in 2021.¹ However, while Dirt World salaries are slightly better than salaries in some industries, that doesn’t mean they’re as good as they could be.

Consider the median salaries for these Dirt World jobs, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics:

*Medians reflect people’s earnings more accurately than averages. A few high or low salaries can make averages look higher or lower than they really are, but medians are the true midpoint.

As you can see, most laborers earn far below the national median salary of $45,760.⁸ And remember, $37,770 is the midpoint, so some laborers make even less.

That can deter people from entering or staying in the industry; they could make more money sitting at a desk. For instance, people can become web developers with no degree and just a few months of training, and the median salary for that job was $78,300 in 2021.⁹

The Dirt World can’t compete with that . . . but workers aren’t asking it to. Many of them chose this industry because it gets them outside working with their hands. They enjoy the job—they just want fair compensation for it.

Good compensation for any Dirt World career factors in more than just the number of hours people work. For instance, how much physical exertion goes into the job? How often will they have to travel away from family for work?

Compensating workers fairly for the sacrifices they make can go a long way toward improving their satisfaction and, in turn, productivity.

That said, money isn’t the only ticket to greater employee satisfaction.

Training and learning opportunities

Did this surprise you? Hopefully not! It’s a testament to the brilliance, creativity, and work ethic that blue-collar workers display on the daily.

The men and women of the Dirt World want to learn—especially the ones in the field.

Field workers want to excel at their jobs. In fact, they think of professional development (like training and learning opportunities) as a type of reward. It’s one of the top three workplace rewards they crave.¹⁰

Training and development also help businesses win. When workers know how to do their jobs well, all these things happen:

• Turnover goes down.
• Productivity goes up.
• People stay safer on jobsites.
• Employee satisfaction increases.
• Mistakes and machine downtime decrease.
• Crews are more likely to finish jobs on time and on budget.
• Leaders can see who’s hungry to grow—and crew members can develop into the high-caliber workers and leaders they want to be.

When the team is firing on all cylinders, more clients and recruits want to work with them. But when crew members don’t get the training and development they need, they’ll become discouraged. They may even leave and go work for someone who will invest in them.

If you’re a business leader looking to increase retention, you can find some creative ways to give your crew high-quality training without breaking the bank.

Other improvements

For the “other” category, people could write in anything they wanted to change about their jobs. We got lots of interesting responses, and most of them had some common threads. Let’s take a look:

What workers would change about their jobs:

Understanding the current state of training and development in the Dirt World

So far, we’ve talked about what Dirt World workers want from the industry. Now it’s time to see what they’re actually getting.

Dirt World workers are under-trained

When we asked how often Dirt World workers get training, over 10% of them said they don’t.

But that’s for all job categories. Over 20% of site laborers reported they never get training.

That means one-fifth of the field labor workforce is trying to do a job that no one taught them how to do. They show up and the boss says, “Go figure it out. If you have questions, ask Joe.” That’s great if Joe is willing to help. But what happens if he doesn’t know how to teach others or share his knowledge effectively?

Many workers who do get training don’t get enough. One-third of all workers receive training once a year or less. That’s hardly enough to stay up-to-date on safety and company procedures, let alone sharpen their skills to advance their careers and help the company raise productivity.

Worse, that number jumps to 57% for site laborers who get training once a year or less. That means the people doing the most hands-on, highest-risk jobs are the ones who don’t learn how to do them.

Turning an untrained or under-trained workforce loose on jobsites creates huge safety risks. They’re more likely to make mistakes and get hurt, especially if they work long hours or have held their position for less than two years.¹³ Training helps prevent injuries, accidents, and fatalities. It also saves time and money, ultimately helping the company grow.

Studies show that the most effective training uses repetition to increase retention. Those who receive frequent training—at least monthly—benefit most.¹⁴

Most training in the industry stinks

Of the survey respondents, 69% rated their company’s training programs “fair” at best. This trend is again stronger among site workers: 74% rated their training as fair, poor, or not provided. 

Most new hires only get field training

Half of all new hires in the Dirt World only receive field training. They have no time to get familiar with the job in a classroom, virtual, or off-site setting; they’re just thrown into the pressure of performing onsite.

Even scarier, nearly one in 10 rookies don’t get any training.

Using multiple training methods is most effective. It helps rookies understand, absorb, and retain the material so they can apply it on the job. And at most companies, field training is one of those methods—so they still get the necessary hands-on experience.

Dirt World workers are so desperate for good training, they’re teaching themselves

Blue-collar workers are a resilient, resourceful bunch. They may not all get the training they need from their employers, but that’s not stopping them from learning!

Here’s how Dirt World workers are teaching themselves the tricks of the trade:

Some of our favorite “other ways” to self-train included joining trade associations, reading books, watching others, and “making a million mistakes”

It’s clear that blue-collar workers want to learn—so much so that they’re willing to go the extra mile and fill in the gaps that poor (or nonexistent) training programs leave.

That said, it’s not always a bad sign if workers self-teach. In companies that offer top-notch training, workers still use these resources to help level up their skills, get promotions, or step into leadership.

Who did we talk to?

Dirt World workers come from all walks of life. Let’s get to know the 607 people who responded to our survey.

A note about survey participants and methodology

The average survey respondent was a man aged 26-41 who worked as a civil construction field manager. He’d been in the industry for over a decade and had a college degree.

Now, that’s the average respondent—not the average Dirt World worker. Millions of people work in this diverse industry, so not everyone fits this profile.

In fact, a lot of people don’t fit this profile. For example, our survey had a high number of respondents who were in leadership positions, under age 40, or had college degrees, whereas the average Dirt World worker is more likely to be a middle-aged field laborer who didn’t attend college.

So, the information we presented here isn’t perfect. (And we won’t be publishing it in a scientific journal any time soon.) However, imperfection doesn’t mean we should throw it out. Over 50% of survey respondents worked in the field, and 25% were site laborers. That’s a good start to get a feel for the pulse of what’s happening in the field, where most people work.

And that’s what we’re really going for here—a good start. This survey can still be helpful for understanding the current state of workforce development and what workers want. And we’ll continue to collect better, more representative data as we learn how best to conduct future surveys.

Hopefully, this one can serve as a solid stepping stone as we work together to blaze a path toward a better Dirt World.