Corruption exists in all industries. Unfortunately, corruption is higher in construction than any other sector of the economy. It is estimated that there are 10-30 percent losses through corruption yearly for the construction industry.
Reasons why corruption can happen easily and occurs a lot in the construction industry:
- The size of the industry’s projects, which are often big, creates a bigger opportunity to inflate costs.
- Inflating costs is easier to hide since all projects are so unique.
- With many contractual links, there are many opportunities for bribery.
- Control and oversight can be difficult when many different tasks are outsourced.
- Complex projects allow for mistakes to be hidden easier.
- Companies learn to adapt to bribery and corruption to keep up with their competition.
- There is space for corruption when there is a lack of due diligence.
- Each profession and trade have different codes of conduct and practices.
- There is not one single organization that is responsible for the industry.
- There’s not a lot of transparency, historically, in the construction field.
- Public companies have more control of the market so it’s harder for private companies to compete.
- Worker’s poor jobs can be easily hidden under layers of other materials.
- When there is a lack of projects, there is a higher risk of bribery.
There’s a lot of money in construction – it’s worth more than $3.2 trillion a year and the global output is $17.5 trillion roughly. Many constructors don’t want to be a part of the corruption but feel pressured to, especially when competition is doing it.
Just like with fraud, you can prevent corruption by being transparent and open with all business you do.
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We have helped thousands of contractors across the United States get licensed. Do not practice without a license – it is illegal in most states to work as a contractor with no license.
After speaking with you, we will help you put together your contractor license application and will send it to the Construction Licensing Board in your state on your behalf to get you approved.
To get your contractor license, click our Florida contractor license page to get started with us or call us at 239-777-1028.