Tag: labor: Page 2

Construction adds 13k jobs in June, unemployment drops to 9.8%

U.S. construction added 13,000 jobs in June, giving the industry its highest employment total in nearly four years. The total number of Americans employed by the industry stands at 5.812 million, according to preliminary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s the highest employment the industry has seen since 5.851 million Americans were employed […]

July 5, 2013

Construction industry lobbyists continue to fight for more guest worker visas as immigration bill moves to House

As the House of Representatives prepares to consider the immigration bill that recently passed the Senate, construction industry lobbyists are preparing for their final chance to increase the limit on guest worker visas offered to the industry. According to a report from the Washington Post, construction industry advocates say more than 200,000 new workers will […]

July 1, 2013

Carpenters’ strike would stop work at several NYC construction projects, including World Trade Center

Some of New York City’s biggest commercial construction projects would be halted should the Manufacturing Woodworkers Association not hammer out a deal with 350 cabinetmakers and wood installers that comprise the Local 2790. According to a report by the New York Daily News, work at “4 World Trade Center, the General Motors building on Fifth Avenue […]

July 1, 2013

The spire of One World Trade Center approaches New York Harbor with the New York skyline in the background. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

Minnesota construction training program for women has 90% job placement rate

Facing big projects like the St. Croix Crossing bridge, the Central Corridor Light Rail and a new football stadium for the Minnesota Vikings, more and more women are filling Minnesota’s need for construction workers thanks to a training program in Minneapolis. Women Wear Hard Hats Too is a 20-week program that seeks to fully prepare women for […]

June 26, 2013

Women Wear Hard Hats Too training program

Skilled labor shortage slows Michigan’s response to growing demand for new homes

After 60,000 of Michigan’s skilled home builders were put out of work during the recession, many left the state to find work elsewhere while some left the trade entirely, reports the Detroit Free Press. Michigan is the latest of several states around the country to report skilled labor shortages as demand for construction rebounds. The […]

June 11, 2013

BIM and iPad use quickly gaining traction in construction industry thanks to productivity boosts

Using an iPad or another of the myriad tablets on the market today to view plans and blueprints on the jobsite is not a new concept to the construction industry. But it is one gaining considerable traction in recent years as firms look to avoid costly mistakes in efforts to boost efficiency. So when a […]

June 5, 2013

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Facing $9 billion in demand, Iowa contractors feel impact of skilled labor shortage

Add Iowa to a growing list of states struggling to meet rebounding construction demand due to a shortage of skilled laborers. According to a report from the Des Moines Register, contractors in Iowa have reported shortages of equipment operators, steel workers, carpenters, supervisors and concrete workers. These companies expect those shortages to deepen in the coming […]

June 3, 2013

Jonathan Silke cuts shingles on a roof in Des Moines. Credit: Bryon Houlgrave/The Des Moines Register

Nonresidential construction index indicates gradual improvement, notes concerns with sequester, labor shortage

The FMI Nonresidential Construction Index has reached the highest mark since its inception in the first quarter of 2009. Released this week, the second quarter 2013 edition of the NRCI reached 60.1. FMI, a management consultant and investment banking provider, surveys a group of panelists each quarter to measure the health of the nonresidential construction […]

May 30, 2013

Energy boom contributes to Houston’s shortage of skilled construction workers

Like just about every other metro area of the country, the Houston-area construction industry is feeling the negative effects of strong demand with the inability to find enough skilled workers to meet it. Unique to Houston’s shortage however is the contribution, or complication, the energy boom in Texas has made, according to Houston’s ABC affiliate […]

May 20, 2013

Houston skilled labor shortage

Skilled construction worker shortage already stifling economic recovery

It looks like Executive Editor Tom Jackson’s fear of construction’s current labor shortage stifling the economic recovery is already coming true. According to a recent report from the Associated Press, construction companies across the country say they feel the economy could be doing even better if they could find enough workers. They say they have […]

May 17, 2013

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Lower pay, higher costs, immigration enforcement involved in California construction companies’ struggle to find workers

Same story, different place. Just like their counterparts in Minnesota and other metro areas across the country, construction companies in California, particularly home builders, can’t seem to find enough workers to fill growing demand for work, reports the Los Angeles Times. The main reason for the struggle is the same too. In the wake of […]

May 9, 2013

Daniel Fregoso, a supervisor at Joseph Holt Plastering Inc. of Corona, makes about $10 an hour less than he did before the recession.

Washington Post: Housing hasn’t led to hiring boom because construction jobs already historically high

Though construction industry employment in the U.S. is steadily improving—adding 18,000 jobs in March amid a dreary overall jobs report—the numbers don’t match the boom the housing market is seeing. This has a lot of people searching for an answer. Recently, we shared with you one interesting theory from the Washington Post’s Neil Irwin. Irwin, […]

April 10, 2013

Credit: Washington Post Wonkblog

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