Related Links: Bureau of Labor Statistics release, with tables AGC economist Ken Simonson release, analysis The construction industry posted strong employment figures for February, adding 48,000 jobs—the largest monthly gain in several years—and lowering its jobless rate from January and February 2012's levels.The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics monthly employment report, released on March 8, shows that construction’s February unemployment rate fell to 15.7% from January’s 16.1%. Last month’s rate also was better than the year-earlier level of 17.1%.All construction sectors experienced a pickup in jobs last month, led by specialty-trade contractors, which added 31,700 positions. Buildings construction recorded a
Related Links: BLS employment report for January 2013, with tables Associated General Contractors of America release/analysis Associated Builders and Contractors release/analysis Construction added 28,000 jobs in January but its 16.1% unemployment rate was worse than December’s 13.5%, as the winter slowdown in building took firmer hold.Nevertheless, last month's rate was much improved from the January 2012 level of 17.7% and was the industry's best January number in five years.The Bureau of Labor Statistics latest monthly look at the U.S. employment picture, released on Feb. 1, showed that all construction sectors gained jobs in January except non-residential building, which lost 2,700
Phot Courtesy of Texas A&M Planned engineering complex will consolidate disparate campus facilities by 2016. Related Links: Texas A&M Launches 25 By 25 Initiative Texas A&M University aims to more than double its engineering-school enrollment, announcing plans to accommodate up to 25,000 students by 2025. Officials say its "25 by 25" initiative will help fill current and projected workforce gaps in Texas and in the U.S. and will create a new complex at its College Station campus that consolidates multiple undergraduate engineering facilities to focus on education, rather than research."The demand for engineering education at Texas A&M has never been
Related Links: BLS employment report for December 2012 AGC release, analysis of December construction jobless figures ABC release, analysis of December construction jobless figures Construction's unemployment rate rose in December to 13.5%, from November’s 12.2%, even with an industry gain of 30,000 jobs last month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported.The latest monthly BLS employment report, released on Jan. 4, also showed that construction’s jobless rate last month was down from the December 2011 figure of 16.0%. December marked the 27th-straight month in which construction posted year-over-year improvement in its unemployment rates.The BLS rates are not adjusted to reflect seasonal
Related Links: Bureau of Labor Statistics release, with data tables Associated General Contractors release and analysis Associated Builders and Contractors release and analysis Construction’s unemployment rate climbed in November to 12.2% from October’s 11.4%, as the industry lost 20,000 jobs last month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported.On the other hand, the latest BLS monthly employment statistics, released on Dec. 7, also showed that construction’s jobless rate last month improved over the November 2012 mark of 13.1%. The BLS rates are not adjusted for seasonal variations, which can be significant in the construction industry.Nearly all construction sectors shed jobs in
Photo by Tudor Van Hampton for ENR Laborers sort through rebar arriving at One Horizon Center in Gurgaon, India. In the foreground, rebar cuttings wait to be hauled away for recycling. Related Links: In India, Small Backhoes Mean Big Business Inside Gurgaon, Indias Bustling Commercial Hub A global symbol of offshoring, India benefits from the massive availability of its workers, including throngs of tradesmen on the construction site. The growing Indian economy depends on the world's second-largest population—soon to become the world's largest, overtaking China, according to U.S. Census Bureau projections—to consume more products as its quality of life improves
Related Links: "Raising the Bar in Contractor Selection"- Fall 2012 issue of CURT magazine The Voice, see page 37. CURT Event Talks up Risk-Taking, Value Creation Aiming to head off projected craft and management shortages and push contractors to boost workforce quality to compete for work, owners are launching a long-gestating rating tool that they want to become a key differentiator in contractor selection. The Contractor Workforce Development Assessment, which would grade firms based on 23 training components, will be deployed widely next year by the Construction Users Round Table.At the group's convention in Orlando, Fla., last month, CURT officials
Edel Rodriguez Are solid employer abuse complaint policies enough? Source: Society for Human Resource Managment Steps to take for supervisors and employers when sexual harassment complaints are received. Related Links: Viewpoint: Tell Bullies to Step Off Will Proposed Anti-Bullying Laws Bring a Wave of Lawsuits? You could call it "jerk control"—what companies do to prevent or prepare for the day an employee crosses the line and starts making racial, sexual or intimidating comments to a co-worker or subordinate. Solid anti-discrimination and abuse policies and complaint procedures have helped contractors prevail in many of the lawsuits filed against them.Whether that has
Illustration by Edel Rodriguez As part of a tabulation, analysis and review of lawsuits filed in the last decade, ENR found that most claims for sexual harassment, including those lodged over same-sex harassment by men, were defeated without a full trial or reversed on appeal. Research by Barbara Mende Ten years of data on construction-related sexual harassment lawsuits. Related Links: Judges Overturn Same-Sex Harassment Verdict Editorial: Justice Denied in Boh Bros. Same-Sex Harass Verdict Viewpoint: Tell Bullies to Step Off What Companies Do to Fend Off Abuse SPECIAL INVESTIGATION In the first few months of 2007, John Cherry worked on
Courtesy of OConnell Electric Powerline crews around New York State struggled with lines damaged by trees. Debra K. Rubin for ENR John Pequet of Townsend Corp. traveled from Livonia, Mich. to New Jersey to help in Hurricane Sandy power restoration. Contractors based in areas struck by Hurricane Sandy pulled in additional hands from their region, joined by workers and companies well beyond, in a repair and restoration campaign of epic dimensions.One electrical worker who came in from Michigan was told only to head East "until you get to the ocean."Depending on logistical finesse and strong determination, crews tackled post-hurricane repairs,
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