As Barbados undergoes an unprecedented wave of construction activity driven by large-scale tourism and infrastructure investment, the island nation is grappling with a critical shortage of trained skilled workers, according to Minister of Technological and Vocational Training Sandra Husbands. Speaking at the launch of the Barbados Annual Construction and Design Conference (BACDC) hosted by the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Council, Husbands detailed how the current construction boom—fueled by a surge of hotel expansions, new builds, road upgrades, renewable energy installations, commercial developments and public infrastructure projects—has stretched the local construction labor force far beyond its current capacity.
Husbands highlighted the massive scale of ongoing investment, pointing to the $800 million Beaches Barbados Sandals Heywoods development as a centerpiece of the current activity, alongside dozens of other residential and hospitality projects across the country. While this wave of investment has created widespread opportunity, generating future jobs not only in construction but also in hospitality and local supply chains, it has simultaneously exposed deep gaps in the skilled labor market that impact even small-scale projects.
“When you look around our country, what is it you’re seeing? We are seeing hotels being refurbished and expanded. We are seeing new hotels being built. And then there’s some that are still to come,” Husbands told reporters. She added that ordinary homeowners are among the groups most affected by the shortage, as they struggle to find available tradespeople for small home repairs and renovations. “The people who may be experiencing the most pain will be householders who are struggling to find a carpenter to do something in their home or a mason to come and do some repairs because we simply do not have sufficient labour to be able to meet the demand in Barbados,” she said.
Despite the challenges, Husbands characterized the labor shortage as “a good problem to have”—a byproduct of strong economic growth after years of stagnation. She explained that the current gap has roots in decades of economic decline, when prolonged downturns forced small contractors out of business and discouraged young people from pursuing careers in the skilled trades. The COVID-19 pandemic further delayed planned investment, leading to a backlog of projects that all launched at the same time once global restrictions lifted. Today, the country is managing nine major construction projects simultaneously, putting unprecedented strain on every segment of the construction labor market.
“So instead of coping with one or two hotels at a time, we now find ourselves with having to manage nine, all wanting foreign exchange, staffing, and supplies in order to get their investment to work,” Husbands said. She outlined the core policy dilemma facing the island: whether to allow investment to shift to neighboring competitor countries like Saint Lucia, Guyana, and Jamaica, or to permit temporary foreign labor while accelerating vocational training to ensure Barbadians can capture the long-term job opportunities created by the boom.
The shortage touches nearly every skilled trade in the sector, from plumbers, tilers, welders, and masons to heavy equipment operators, refrigeration technicians, and construction supervisors. The gap is particularly acute for licensed heavy-duty truck drivers, where companies are offering weekly salaries ranging from $700 to more than $1,100 to attract qualified candidates—yet still struggle to fill open roles. “Without drivers, materials don’t move, equipment does not move, and projects will slow down,” Husbands noted. She added that Barbados is far from alone in this challenge, with neighboring Caribbean nations including Antigua and Barbuda, Trinidad and Tobago, and Jamaica reporting similar skilled labor gaps in their construction sectors.
To address the crisis, Husbands argued that Barbados must dramatically accelerate its technical and vocational training programs while shifting long-held cultural perceptions that only traditional academic qualifications lead to successful careers. For too long, skilled trade occupations have been overlooked, even as demand for certified, practical workers has continued to grow.
“Today, the realities of the labour market are telling us something different. The skilled trades matter, technical expertise matters, and certification matters,” she said. The Ministry of Technological and Vocational Training was created in part specifically to help the Barbadian workforce pivot toward these high-demand, lucrative careers available through the TVET system.
Beyond attracting new entrants to the trades, Husbands noted that the industry also faces challenges around workforce soft skills, with many employers reporting concerns about work ethic and professional conduct among existing employees. “Many employers express concern not only that young people are not entering the construction sector in numbers, but also they are concerned about the work attitudes that our labor force now bring daily to the workplace,” she said. “The technical skill is insufficient; the attitude with the skills will make them unstoppable.”
As part of the government’s comprehensive response, the ministry plans to launch a targeted skills upgrade program for existing contractors, giving them access to training through local institutions like the Samuel Jackman Prescod Institute (SJPI) and the Barbados Vocational Training Board (BVTB) to learn modern construction technologies and update their professional capabilities. “One of the things we’re looking forward to is establishing a programme where we specially target the existing contractors and provide space and opportunity for them to get the necessary training… so that they can upgrade their skills and use those modern technologies and stay in the game,” Husbands explained.
The minister also emphasized the critical role of formal certification, particularly for experienced workers who have developed advanced skills through on-the-job experience but lack formal credentials. She framed prior learning assessment recognition as a transformative tool to unlock career mobility for thousands of Barbadians who have the talent and experience but no formal certification. “Certification is becoming the passport to opportunity,” she said. “Prior learning assessment recognition is a powerful passport to accelerating the career opportunities and mobility of thousands of Barbadians who have talent, who have experience and expertise, but never had a certificate in their life.”
Husbands stressed that the TVET Council and local training institutions must prepare both new entrants and incumbent workers for a modern construction industry that is increasingly shaped by digital innovation. Today’s construction sector is far removed from outdated perceptions of manual labor, she noted, now requiring expertise in digital tools, modern project management systems, precision surveying, building diagnostics, sustainable design, smart building technologies, and drone operations.
The newly launched BACDC will serve as a collaborative platform for industry stakeholders, policymakers, and training providers to discuss the sector’s most pressing challenges and opportunities as Barbados continues to see sustained development activity. Ultimately, Husbands said, the country must leverage the current boom to build a resilient, future-ready skilled labor force that can meet immediate project demand while adapting to the evolving needs of the global construction industry.