Construction unemployment unchanged in May

Construction employment was virtually unchanged in May as the industry added just 2,000 jobs for the month. The sector’s unemployment rate fell to 16.3%, according to an analysis of federal employment data by Associated General Contractors of America.
The association reported that declines in public sector construction demand are offsetting slight increases in private sector demand, resulting in stagnant construction employment levels that are unlikely to change soon.
At the current rate of growth, the construction industry will continue to experience double-digit unemployment rates for a long time,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Simply put, there just isn’t enough demand for construction to fuel the kind of hiring needed to get industry employment back to where it was in 2007.”
Association officials said that construction employment is unlikely to change much for the rest of the year. They said recent construction spending figures indicate that federal, state and local governments are cutting investments in infrastructure and other construction projects. Those declines are largely being offset by slight increases in private sector demand for construction, especially in power construction.