TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The personnel shortage in the construction sector more than doubled from 2019 to 2020, according to a report by the Ministry of Interior’s Construction and Planning Agency (CPA) published Tuesday (Feb. 8).

In 2019, the sector was looking for 48,000 new employees, while in 2020 it was short 118,000 workers, or 1.45 times more than the previous year. The survey found that construction firms face another obstacle in the form of raw material cost hikes, CNA reported.

Of the 138,837 employees in the sector, 58% serve in technical and management positions, while 39% are involved in the construction itself. Employees are between 35 to 65 years of age, on average, the CPA said.

Construction companies need to find 88,897 employees, including 20,471 basic workers and 68,426 engineering workers. The shortage in central Taiwan is the most severe, with companies looking for more than 42,000 employees, followed by the north, where more than 35,000 workers are needed.

The CPA advised construction companies to register their job offers with the Ministry of Labor for a more efficient way of finding personnel.

The survey was conducted between June and Oct. 2021 and resulted in 1,900 valid responses, the government department said.