Citing newly released federal data, Associated General Contractors
officials said the numbers of people working in construction rose to a two-year
high.
The
U.S. construction industry added 21,000 jobs last month as the mild winter
weather in much of the country kept workers busy, the Associated
General Contractors of America said.
Citing new federal data, AGC officials said the numbers of people
working in construction rose to a two-year high in January.
Despite the positive movement, Ken Simonson, the association’s chief
economist, said it too soon to know if the trend will hold.
“Although it’s great news that the industry has
added 52,000 jobs in the past two months, the unemployment rate in construction
is still double that of the overall economy, and construction employment remains
at 1996 levels,” Simonson said. “It will take another month or two to see if
the recent job growth reflects a sustained pickup or merely acceleration of
home building and highway projects that normally halt when the ground freezes
in December and January.”
Total construction employment now stands at
5,572,000, which is 0.4 percent higher than in December 2011, and 21 percent
higher than in January 2011 - which was a very cold and snowy month in much of the
country, the economist said.
