If you listen to Joe Link, the biggest problem facing homebuilders in the coming years isn't competition from other builders. Rather, it is maintaining a skilled labor force that seems to be gravitating to other, less strenuous, more lucrative jobs.

Link, a former builder who owns an Ellicott City marketing and consulting firm, has been lecturing with his partner -- California builder consultant Steve McGee -- in major markets nationwide on how to meet the labor shortage and make builders more accountable.

"I don't think we have turned the corner," Link said. "We're still struggling against trends that are taking people out of the trades and into other realms."

The pair will be among the featured speakers at Wednesday's BuilderMart at the Maryland State Fairgrounds -- a one-day, industry-only convention sponsored by the Home Builders Association of Maryland that highlights new products and trends.

When new-home sales began an upward swing in the Baltimore area last year, many builders experienced difficulties in finding framing crew. That only aggravated and contributed to more scheduling problems for other trades -- such as plumbers and electricians -- who are needed to get homes delivered on time, usually 90 to 110 days.

According to a survey in December by the National Association of Home Builders, more than eight out of 10 builders nationwide reported "some to serious shortage" of rough carpenters, finishing carpenters and framing crews. And two out of three builders reported "some to significantly" higher costs for electricians, roofers, plumbers and bricklayers. The survey found that almost half of the builders solved the problem by delaying construction at the site.

It is Link's contention that the shortage of laborers has evolved because builders have not paid attention to four "simplistic" areas: wages, working conditions, job recognition and job security.

Targeting work force

He points to Austin, Texas, where Dell Computer Corp., takes aim at the building industry when it needs to supplement its work force.

"They literally will run ads that speak to the things that I've been talking about," Link said. " 'We [Dell] have a great work environment. Benefit packages. Training programs. And you can have a career for life with us,' and it targets construction personnel."

Beyond wages and benefits, Link said contractors get frustrated with builders who can't keep to a schedule, and for them time is money.

"You have to put some measurements in place," Link said. "It's something that our industry is long overdue, [we're] one of the last industries that I can spot that is very weak in trying to build a very complicated process of monitoring and measuring systems. You have literally 35 to 45 companies that would be your suppliers and trade contractors [who] all have impact on the process."

Cindy McAuliffe, sales and marketing manager for Grayson Homes, the eighth-largest builder in Baltimore, agreed.

"You have to have a system in place, but it has to be supervisor-driven. You can have all the systems in place in the world, but if you have a supervisor who doesn't keep his schedule and doesn't keep his sub [contractors] on schedule, then he will lose credibility with the subcontractors. A good supervisor will always notify a subcontractor if he is not going to be ready and that way he maintains his credibility with the subcontractor."

If there are problems getting framers, electricians and plumbers to finish on time, then the finishing workers -- painters and carpenters -- usually get squeezed at the end of a project. That, in turn, has an impact on the homeowner.

"If there is trim work, but it is not up to par a homeowner has to look at it year after year. So your probability of having some dissatisfaction probably goes up," Link said.

Offer praise, too

Link also lectures builders that if their supervisors criticize subcontractors, they should be just as quick to offer praise.

"What do you think the superintendent is accustomed to writing down? What's wrong," Link said. "That's OK to a point, but it ignores what is right. That's the way a lot of supervisory people treat trade contractors and crews.

"We recommend that you recognize them when they are doing a good job, which seems real simple, but it is one of the reasons that we see, why a lot of people are leaving the trades and going to work for other industries."

And, Link says, if builders work on the first three issues, then more laborers will stay with a trade longer.

"If you are improving wages and improving benefits and giving recognition for a job well done, the people feel more secure about their job, instead of getting screamed and yelled at all the time," Link added.