The entity's representative, Elizeo Cristopfer Ramírez, believes it is necessary to develop a medium- and long-term plan to strengthen job skills and reduce dependence on undocumented foreign personnel
SANTO DOMINGO– The president of the Dominican Confederation of Micro, Small and Medium Construction Companies (COPYMECON), Elizeo Cristopfer Ramírez, raised the need to implement a technical training program aimed at Dominican workers, warning that the shortage of qualified personnel and the difficulties in having sufficient human resources on construction sites represent significant challenges for the country's construction industry.
In this regard, Ramírez maintained that the activity requires a medium- and long-term strategy to prepare Dominican citizens, expand their skills, and gradually reduce dependence on undocumented foreign workers, without disrupting project development. These statements were made during the second ACOSDE congress, entitled “Building the Future.”.
“What I’m saying is that if we don’t make a medium- and long-term plan to gradually displace illegal and informal foreign labor in the Dominican Republic, we’re simply going to have very serious consequences in the construction sector,” the business leader stated.
He also considered that the solution should be based on a permanent policy of teaching and skills development, with the participation of the authorities, employers and the institutions in charge of professional training.
Immigration operations jeopardize the continuity of projects
Furthermore, the head of COPYMECON warned that immigration interventions can directly impact the execution of works when companies lose some of the personnel in charge of construction work.
“When Immigration attacks and arrests them, the workforce simply stops in the country,” Ramírez said, explaining that the detention of employees makes it difficult to maintain the usual pace of activities on the projects.
Given this situation, the business representative pointed out that construction companies face a complex scenario, as they need to have enough staff to meet the established deadlines and, at the same time, respect the regulations governing labor contracts.
“Now, we builders have two options: either we leave the market or perhaps we have the satisfaction of having to fall into illegality, because we are employing illegal labor,” he said during the interview.
Given this situation, Ramírez insisted that the problem demands structural responses that allow companies to have trained employees who are bound by current legal provisions.
Therefore, he argued that the institutional response should not focus solely on immigration controls, but also on creating alternatives that broaden the participation of Dominicans in this activity and promote the regularization of employment.
A shortage of qualified personnel limits the development of the industry
When addressing the causes of the lack of trained employees, Ramirez explained that a significant proportion of those working in this area perform tasks that do not require formal specialization, highlighting the need to expand opportunities for technical learning.
“Look, we have a very difficult situation because the large sector we have is unskilled labor,” he said.
Similarly, the president of COPYMECON pointed out that among the obstacles facing the industry are language barriers, cultural differences, and the limited training of some employees, circumstances which, he stated, can influence the performance of their duties.
However, he clarified that these shortcomings must be addressed through educational initiatives and mechanisms that allow for raising the skills of those involved in the work, rather than attributing all the responsibility to foreign workers.
In that context, he stated: “In construction, the construction workforce is very deficient; we must try to continue regularizing it or, better said, training it and, above all, find ways for employers and builders to make it more qualified every day.”.
Technical training and formal employment as solutions
Based on this reality, Ramírez considered that professional training should become a priority for business owners and organizations linked to this activity, with the purpose of improving the quality of work and responding to the demands of an industry that needs personnel with specific knowledge to execute the different phases of each project.
Furthermore, he stated that having more qualified Dominicans would help reduce dependence on undocumented foreign workers and strengthen the operational capacity of national companies.
Along the same lines, he highlighted the importance of establishing cooperation mechanisms between the public and private sectors to promote training programs tailored to the real needs of construction companies.
Similarly, he considered it necessary to accompany these initiatives with measures that facilitate formal hiring, guarantee compliance with labor standards and promote a gradual transition towards a more prepared workforce.
Finally, the business leader reiterated that worker training should be seen as a continuous process, supported by regularization policies and medium- and long-term planning.
In this way, he argued that it will be possible to increase the availability of qualified Dominican personnel, reduce hiring difficulties, and prevent the shortage of skilled workers from continuing to affect the progress of infrastructure and construction projects in the Dominican Republic.
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