Construction employment increased in 138 out of 337 metropolitan areas between March 2010 and March 2011, decreased in 153 and stayed level in 46, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. But association officials said that the industry's five-year employment slump is far from over, and could worsen as public construction winds down. “Even with more metro areas adding jobs than in any 12-month period since November 2007, the fact is most areas are far below previous construction employment peaks,” said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. “With federal … Read more

Construction employment decreased in 27 states and the District of Columbia between February and March, while 33 states lost construction jobs during the past 12 months, the Associated General Contractors of America reported in an analysis of state employment data released by the Labor Department. Association officials said the data show that construction remains gripped in a depression that merits urgent corrective actions at federal and state levels. “These data show that recovery is spotty and variable in construction, as the location and number of states with job gains retreated from the levels in February,” said Ken Simonson, the association's … Read more

Construction employment increased in 141 out of 337 metropolitan areas between February 2010 and February 2011, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said that the relatively positive figures were likely affected by significantly improved winter weather in February, combined with the benefits of ongoing stimulus and other temporary federal construction programs. “With nearly half of all U.S. metro areas finally adding construction jobs, these numbers are welcome news,” said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist. “But warm winter weather probably played a larger role in driving these … Read more