Construction Employment Continues to Grow in United States

Recent data, which was released and reported by the Associated General Contractor of America, shows that the construction sector has done exceptionally well, in terms of growth, within the span of just one year, from 2010 to 2011. In fact, in the United States, 148 of the 337 metro areas saw an increase in the number of employment for the construction sector. The growth took place from December of 2010 through December of 2011. The construction employment also stayed at a steady pace in 61 of the areas. Some areas, however, did see a decrease. Approximately 128 of the metro areas saw a decrease in construction employment.

It is believed that the employments within the construction sector took place because, as the economy begins its recovery process, more people are having homes and buildings constructed. So much so, there was a 4.3 percent increase in spending, put towards construction, from December of 2010 to December of 2011.

One economist, Ken Simonson, believes that a lot of the different communities are thriving and growing with this new demand for construction. With more construction jobs added, more construction workers are able to find the employment they have been seeking for quite a while now. Simonson also pointed out that while some areas are thriving, there are still many areas in which construction employment has decreased, causing huge losses, as the market is still fairly weak.

In the United States, the state with the largest amount of construction jobs lost was Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with 4,800 job losses within the span of a year. In the meantime, Illinois and Wisconsin were the two states to do the best within the span, adding the highest amount of new jobs within the construction sector.

Simonson made it a point to show that the spending rate for the construction did increase within the span of a year, from $782.9 billion in 2010 to $816.5 billion in 2011. But, he also points out that for the entire year, the amount of spending put toward the construction sector actually declined by 2 percent from the original total in 2010.

Economists say that the increase in construction jobs were partly due to private sector growth. It also believed that the newest developments in Washington, which includes a highway and bridge, could also help with adding construction jobs to a number of different areas. This will allow more construction workers in and around the area to find the work they have been actively pursuing. Officials are asking Congress to act on these measures as a means of helping boost the construction sector and the economy as a whole. If Congress was to act on these measures, Washington could begin helping the construction industry recover, adding more available jobs and employing more people.