ABC Announces Second Chance Month, Construction Looking to Hire Reentering Citizens

Associated Builders and Contractors is committed to shaping an industry that welcomes all people. As part of Second Chance Month, ABC has highlighted the programs, partnerships and involvement of its chapters and members across the country in educating, upskilling and hiring reentering citizens. “Second Chance Month raises awareness around the value that reentering citizens can bring to the construction workforce,” said Greg Sizemore, ABC’s vice president of health, safety, environment and workforce development. “These individuals have paid their debt to society and should be given the opportunity to achieve their newly found career dreams, and these inspiring stories highlight how … Read more

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Construction Adds 110K Jobs in March, ABC Says Here Comes Tsunami of Growth

The construction industry added 110,000 jobs in March, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The industry has added 931,000 jobs since April 2020, recovering 83.6% of the jobs lost during earlier stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. The construction unemployment rate fell to 8.6% in March from 9.6% in February, but it is still 1.7 percentage points higher than in March 2020. Unemployment across all industries declined from 6.2% in February to 6.0% in March. A significant percentage of the job growth was registered in nonresidential construction, which added … Read more

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Construction Begins on 2 Texas Solar Farms

Lightsource bp has chosen McCarthy Building Companies to serve as the engineering, procurement and construction contractor for two utility-scale solar farms in Texas. McCarthy is responsible for the design, procurement, construction and commissioning of both facilities: the 163 megawatt Elm Branch Solar Farm located approximately 40 miles south of Dallas in Ennis, Texas and the 153 megawatt Briar Creek Solar Farm located 60 miles south of Dallas in Corsicana, Texas. Construction of the two projects recently began and is slated to complete in September with commercial operations of both solar farms expected by late 2021. The energy produced will offset … Read more

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New Coronavirus Recovery Measure to Provide Relief for Contractors Coping with Project Cancelations, Falling Demand

The Associated General Contractors of America’s CEO Stephen E. Sandherr issued the following statement in reaction to the release of compromise coronavirus relief legislation slated for House and Senate votes as early as Dec. 21:   “The new coronavirus recovery measure announced today should provide some needed relief for a construction industry that is coping with project cancellations and job losses in most parts of the country. Most notably, the measure includes $10 billion in needed funding to help address the pandemic-induced shortfalls in state transportation revenues. This new funding should keep a number of road projects from getting canceled … Read more

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Construction Sector Adds 84,000 Workers in October, Project Cancellations Undermine Future Gains, says AGC

Construction employment increased by 84,000 jobs in October, with jobs added in both nonresidential and residential categories, according to a recent analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of government data. Association officials cautioned, however, that the pandemic is causing a growing number of construction projects to be canceled or delayed, according to a survey the association released in late October.   “The employment data for October is good news, but our latest survey found that only a minority of contractors expect to add to their workforce in the next 12 months,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. … Read more

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