Construction Firms Add 1,000 Jobs in April, AGC Career Center Launches New Program

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Construction employment rose in April by 1,000 for the month and 261,000 for the year as mild winter weather and labor shortages impacted the early spring hiring season for many firms, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America. “Some of the slowdown in hiring last month was due to mild winter weather that allowed contractors to hire or retain workers in the first quarter instead of waiting until spring,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Yet reports from contractors and recent Census Bureau data on construction spending through March suggest industry demand for workers will … Read more

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Dodge Momentum Index Increases in April

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NEW YORK, N.Y. – The Dodge Momentum Index rose 0.6 percent in April to 116.5 from its revised March reading of 115.8 (2000=100). The momentum index is a monthly measure of the first (or initial) report for nonresidential building projects in planning, which have been shown to lead construction spending for nonresidential buildings by a full year. April’s gain was due to increased planning activity for both commercial and institutional building, with commercial planning moving 0.8 percent higher and institutional planning rising 0.4 percent. Over the last eight months institutional planning has been on somewhat of a roller coaster ride … Read more

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ABC Report: Safety Best Practices Can Make Construction Companies 720% Safer

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WASHINGTON, D.C. –Associated Builders and Contractors recently released its 2016 Safety Performance Report to further the industry’s understanding of how to make construction jobsites safer. Packed with infographics and practical takeaways, the report documents the dramatic impact of using proactive safety practices to reduce recordable incidents by up to 86 percent, making the best-performing companies 720 percent safer than the industry average. “Until now, relatively little research has been conducted on the correlation between the use of ‘leading indicators,’ such as  substance abuse programs, new hire safety orientation and near-miss investigations and safer construction jobsites,” said ABC President and CEO … Read more

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CPWR Toolbox Talks: Now en Español

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The Center for Construction Research and Training’s 52 toolbox talk series is now available in Spanish, alongside English-language counterparts on the CPWR website, thanks to a collaborative effort with the American Society of Safety Engineers. This series, a collaboration in content development with NIOSH, has been available in English for over two years and is widely used on construction sites across the country. These free toolbox talks incorporate effective training elements, identified through NIOSH research, including case studies, discussion questions and site-specific actions to promote a safety culture, and provide a year’s worth of content for safety on the jobsite. … Read more

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CMD Predicts Continued Improvement for Q2 Nonresidential Construction

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ATLANTA, Ga. – U.S. construction starts increased 7.4 percent, higher than expected in the first quarter of 2016. On the heels of a 5.8 percent gain in 2015, nonresidential starts are tracking positively for the second quarter, according to CMD’s latest quarterly forecast report. The forecast, which combines CMD’s proprietary data with macroeconomic factors, expects a total year-over-year dollar volume increase of 7.4 percent this year, which is slightly higher than the 6.5 percent increase that was expected in the Q1 forecast. Nonresidential building structures that will see the fastest percentage gains in 2016 include office buildings, transportation terminals and … Read more

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