Construction Employment Increases in 43 States Between April 2018, April 2019

Forty-three states added construction jobs between April 2018 and April 2019, while construction employment increased in 32 states and the District of Columbia from March to April, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data. Association officials said the strong gains show demand for workers remains robust and they urged federal officials to enact immigration reforms to boost the supply of qualified workers. “Construction employment rose in most states over the past year, yet the record number of job openings at the end of March implies contractors would add even more workers if […]

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Construction Input Prices Continue to Rise, Says ABC

Construction input prices increased 0.9% in April on a monthly basis and 2.4% compared to the same time last year, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Nonresidential input prices rose 0.9% compared to March and are up 2.8% on an annual basis. Among the 11 subcategories, seven experienced price decreases last month, with the largest decreases in natural gas (-8.7%), iron and steel (-1.7%) and steel mill products (-1.7%). The four subcategories that experienced monthly price increases were crude petroleum (+13.9%), unprocessed energy materials (+3.7%), prepared asphalt products (+2.7%) and concrete […]

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Construction Employment Increases in 218 Metros from March 2018 to March 2019

Construction employment grew in 218, or 61 percent, out of 358 metro areas between March 2018 and March 2019, declined in 83 (23 percent) and was unchanged in 57, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released by the Associated General Contractors of America. Meanwhile, new federal data on construction spending showed mixed results, as a steep decline in single-family homebuilding offset increases in multifamily and nonresidential construction. Association officials said the continuing demand for most construction underscores the need for federal enactment of immigration reforms to boost the supply of workers. “Fewer metros than in recent months […]

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March Construction Starts Surge 16 Percent

New construction starts in March advanced 16% from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $809.2 billion, according to Dodge Data & Analytics. The substantial gain followed a lackluster performance during the first two months of 2019, as total construction starts in March were able to climb back to a level slightly above the average monthly pace during 2018. The March data produced a reading of 171 for the Dodge Index (2000=100), up from 148 in February, and 1% higher than the full year 2018 average for the Dodge Index at 170. At the same time, the Dodge Index […]

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Construction Employment Increases in 38 States from March 2018 Year Over Year

Thirty-eight states added construction jobs between March 2018 and March 2019, while construction employment increased in 29 states between February and March, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data. Association officials said the widespread gains show demand for workers remains strong and urged federal officials to enact immigration reforms to boost the supply of qualified workers. “Although construction has added jobs in many states at a higher rate than the private sector as a whole in the past year, the record number of job openings at the end of February shows contractors […]

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