Almost exactly two years ago, on Nov. 6, 2021, Congress passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal or the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. Its aim was to pour a trillion dollars into the country’s infrastructure, including transportation, green energy and broadband, adding 1.5 million jobs per year. But many have yet to feel the effects from the act.
Ken Simonson, Chief Economist for the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), said, at the 2023 Arizona Construction Workforce Management Summit, that the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will give a major boost to manufacturing, power and construction but the money will be slow to turn into construction awards and spending. But that could soon be changing – and contractors need to be prepared to manage the additional work.
States Are Getting Their Money
Federal funds from the act are now being administered to states and local governments. As of May 2023, the White House stated that more than $220 billion has been awarded which will fund more than 32,000 specific projects and awards in all 50 states plus Washington, D.C. and territories.
Below is just a snapshot of some of the amounts awarded:
- Alabama – $3.2 billion for 207 projects.
- Arizona – $4 billion for 357 projects.
- California – $20 billion for 910 projects.
- Colorado – $3.6 billion for 239 projects.
- Florida – $9.2 billion for 340 projects.
- Illinois – $9 billion for 263 projects.
- Iowa – $2.5 billion for 223 projects.
- Louisiana – $4.5 billion for 240 projects.
- Massachusetts – $4.5 billion for 161 projects.
- Montana – $4.6 billion for 288 projects.
- North Carolina – $4.9 billion for 253 projects.
- Oklahoma – $3.1 billion for 301 projects.
- Texas – $15 billion for 589 projects.
- Washington – $4.3 billion for 342 projects.
The National League of Cities has developed a Rebuilt America dashboard that shows which cities, towns and villages have received direct federal grants from the act. As of August 2023, the act has given more than $13 billion to 1,162 local governments for 1,647 projects.
Are Your Workforce Management Processes Ready?
With billions already awarded, and more to come, contractors who work with local and state governments need to be prepared to take on the extra work because managing a field-based workforce requires tracking a lot of moving parts (literally). Contractors have to track the hours worked for each employee and how that translates to certified payroll (a must for maintaining compliance), but they also need to manage how and where they’re working. A good digital time tracking app can help.
ExakTime’s time tracking solution not only accurately tracks worker time – and syncs with more than 90 payroll and accounting systems – but has features that help improve field oversight – a game changer when you’re managing more than one project and/or crew. It allows managers to view company time clocks and project information from anywhere, track crews and equipment, schedule shifts and tasks and add project notes and images.
ExakTime also lets companies create custom ad hoc messages to individuals or groups to keep all staff or individual crews and employees informed. Custom messages can be used to notify employees are weather delays or alerts, change in job sites, reminders to approve time sheets, of upcoming holidays, meetings and/or open enrollment. The list is endless.
Staying informed about what your crews are doing helps improve how you plan and bid on future infrastructure projects. Labor is a huge cost so being able to accurately estimate it helps construction companies remain competitive, while not under-bidding.
ExakTime’s solutions scale with your company, giving you the flexibility and confidence to take on more jobs and workers when demand is high.
Contact us to learn more.
