A Sustainable Workforce Starts With You

Construction employment hits 5½ year high in November; spending climbs in OctoberEditor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 321,000 in December, seasonally adjusted, and by 2,734,000 (2.0%) over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday. Construction employment rose by 20,000 for the month and 213,000 (3.6%) over the year to 6,109,000, the highest total since April 2009. Residential construction employment (residential building and specialty trade contractors) climbed by 16,700 for the month and 122,800 (5.6%) for the year. Nonresidential employment (building, specialty trades, and heavy and civil engineering construction) increased by 3,600 in November and 90,100 (2.4%) year-over-year. Average hourly earnings for all employees in construction rose 2.7% from November 2013 to November 2014, the largest year-over-year increase since September 2009 and double the 1.3% increase recorded a year earlier. The number of jobseekers who last worked in construction hit an eight-year low of 629,000 and their unemployment rate fell to the lowest November level in seven years:  
Ken Simonson's picture
December 09, 2014
Most states record job gains through October; PPIs for inputs, highway cost index slideEditor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.Sign up now for December 4 NABE Webinar with economists from AGC, AIA and Redin.Seasonally adjusted construction employment increased in 37 states and the District of Columbia from October 2013 to October 2014, decreased in 12 states, and remained flat in Hawaii, an AGC analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data released last Friday showed. Florida again added the most jobs (38,900 jobs, 10.2%), followed by Texas (38,500, 6.2%) and California (34,300, 5.3%). The largest percentage gains were in North Dakota (15%, 4,900 jobs), Utah (14.9%, 11,000) and Florida.  
Ken Simonson's picture
November 26, 2014
CMD, Dodge, Lodging Econometrics reports imply spending gain; higher ed faces hurdleEditor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.Several recent private indicators point to expanding construction activity ahead. The value of nonresidential construction starts grew 11% from October 2013 to October 2014 and 7.5% year-to-date for the first 10 months of 2014 combined compared to the same period last year, CMD (formerly Reed Construction Data) reported last Thursday, based on data it collected. Nonresidential building starts increased 9.8% year-over-year and 5.7% year-to-date, with commercial building categories up 25% and 4.8% respectively, and institutional buildings up 5.2% and 7.6%. Heavy engineering starts climbed 9.8% and 5.7%.  
Ken Simonson's picture
November 19, 2014
Employment rises in October; spending falls in September; Dodge predicts healthy 2015Editor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.Sign up now for November 20 AGC/AIA/CMD (formerly Reed) webinar.Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 214,000, seasonally adjusted, in October and 2,804,000 (1.9%) over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported last Friday. Construction employment increased by 12,000 for the month and 231,000 (3.9%) over the year to 6,095,000, the highest total since May 2009. Residential construction employment (residential building and specialty trade contractors) climbed by 8,000 for the month and 130,600 (6.0%) for the year. Nonresidential employment (building, specialty trades, and heavy and civil engineering construction) increased by 3,600 in October and 99,800 (2.7%) year-over-year.  
Ken Simonson's picture
November 10, 2014
More metros add jobs in September; architecture billings rise; retail outlook stays bleakEditor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.Sign up now for Nov. 20 AGC/AIA/CMD (formerly Reed) webinar.From September 2013 to September 2014, construction employment increased in 236 out of 339 metropolitan areas (including divisions of larger metros) for which BLS reports construction data, declined in 53 and was unchanged in 50, according to an analysis that AGC released last Wednesday. (BLS combines mining and logging with construction in most metros to avoid disclosing data for industries with few firms. Because metro data is not seasonally adjusted, comparisons with months other than September are not meaningful.) Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown added the most construction jobs in the past year (13,500 construction jobs, 7%), followed by the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale division (10,100 construction jobs, 9%) and the Dallas-Plano-Irving division (9,900 combined jobs, 9%). The largest percentage gains occurred in Owensboro, Ky. (33%, 900 combined jobs), Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, Fla. (26%, 1,000 combined jobs) and Lake Charles, La. (25%, 2,700 construction jobs). Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale again lost the most jobs (-6,900 construction jobs, -7%), followed by the Bethesda-Rockville-Frederick, Md. division (-4,100 combined jobs, -12%).  
Ken Simonson's picture
November 03, 2014
Contractors report trouble finding workers, expect worse ahead as employment picks upEditor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.Contractors report increasing difficulty finding qualified workers.  AGC reported last Wednesday that 83% of the 1,086 respondents to a survey it conducted in late August and September said their firms were having a hard time filling craft worker positions and 61% said the same about key professional positions. (In a survey AGC released in January, 53% reported difficulty filling craft positions and 45% reported difficulty filling professional positions.) Of 12 crafts included in the survey, the most-cited position was carpenters, with 66% of firms that employ carpenters saying they are hard to find. Other hard-to-fill crafts included roofers (listed by 64% of firms that employ them); equipment operators (59%); plumbers (54%); electricians (52%); iron workers, laborers and pipefitters/welders (49% each); and cement masons (48%).  
Ken Simonson's picture
October 27, 2014
PPIs remain mild in September; employment rises; construction spending drops in AugustEditor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.The producer price index (PPI) for final demand dropped 0.3%, not seasonally adjusted (-0.1%, seasonally adjusted), in September and rose 1.6% over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported last Wednesday. AGC posted an explanation and tables focusing on construction prices and costs. Final demand includes goods, services and five types of nonresidential buildings that BLS says make up 34% of total construction. There are no indexes yet for other building types, or for residential or nonbuilding construction. The PPI for final demand construction, not seasonally adjusted, was flat in September and rose 3.0% over 12 months. The overall PPI for new nonresidential building construction—a measure of the price contractors say they would charge to build a fixed set of five categories of buildings—was flat for the month and up 3.1% since September 2013. The PPI for new warehouse construction fell 0.1% in September and rose 2.2% over 12 months; offices, 0.1% and 3.2%, respectively; industrial buildings, 0 and 3.3%; school buildings, -0.1% and 3.4%; and health care buildings, 0 and 2.7%. PPIs for new, repair and maintenance work on nonresidential buildings by concrete contractors rose 0.1% and 1.5%; electrical contractors, 0 and 1.0%; plumbing contractors, 0 and 4.7%; and roofers, -0.4% and 4.9%.  
Ken Simonson's picture
October 20, 2014
Cost increases widen, three surveys report; AIA finds billings rise, stalled projects reviveEditor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.“Current construction costs increased for the 32nd consecutive month in September,” IHS and the Procurement Executives Group (PEG) reported last Wednesday.  “The headline current IHS PEG Engineering and Construction Cost Index (ECCI) registered 57.8% in September, up from 53% in August, and by a narrow margin, the highest reading since March 2013….The materials/equipment component of the ECCI strengthened to 59.0%, up 5.5 [percentage points] from August….all 12 components show[ed] higher prices, following an August reading that showed six components either neutral or falling.  
Ken Simonson's picture
September 29, 2014
Construction employment rises in 36 states; BLS, Means, FHWA price indexes divergeEditor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.Seasonally adjusted construction employment increased in 36 states from August 2013 to August 2014, decreased in 12 states and the District of Columbia, and remained flat in Idaho and New Hampshire, an AGC analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data released last Friday showed. Florida again added the most jobs (43,500 jobs, 12%), followed by California (35,600, 5.6%) and Texas (27,700, 4.5%). The largest percentage gains were in Nevada (13%, 7,200 jobs), Florida, Utah (11%, 8,400) and Delaware (11%, 2,100). New Jersey had the worst construction job losses, -11,300 jobs and -8.1%, followed by Arizona, -5,400, -4.4% (fourth highest percentage loss); Mississippi, -3,700, -7.1% (second in percent lost); and West Virginia, -1,800, -5.3% (third in percent lost).  
Ken Simonson's picture
September 22, 2014
Employment hits 5-year high in August; Manpower poll implies more hiring next quarterEditor’s note:  Construction Citizen is proud to partner with AGC America to bring you AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson's Data DIGest. Check back each week to get Ken's expert analysis of what's happening in our industry.Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 142,000, seasonally adjusted, in August and 2,482,000 (1.8%) over 12 months, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on September 5. Construction employment rose by 20,000 for the month and 232,000 (4.0%) over the year to 6,068,000, the highest total since May 2009. Residential construction employment (residential building and specialty trade contractors) climbed by 13,200 for the month and 123,100 (5.7%) for the year. Nonresidential employment (building, specialty trades, and heavy and civil engineering construction) increased by 6,400 in August and 108,600 (3.0%) year-over-year. All five residential and nonresidential segments added workers for the month and year.  
Ken Simonson's picture
September 15, 2014