Construction employment falls over the year in November in R.I.

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island was second-to-last in the nation for its nearly 7 percent year-over-year drop in construction jobs in November, according to the Associated General Contractors of America.
The Ocean State had 15,300 construction jobs in November, compared with 16,400 in November 2014. Only one state performed worse on the ranking, which included the District of Columbia – West Virginia, which saw construction employment fall 14.5 percent to 27,100 from 31,700 a year ago.
On a month-over-month basis, Rhode Island’s rank improved to 33rd, due to a 100-job gain from October to November, a 0.7 percent increase.
The association, citing federal Labor Department data, said that strong demand for construction projects fueled job growth in November in 38 states compared with October and in all but six states – including Rhode Island – over the past year.

“In nearly every state, contractors are busier now than a year ago,” Ken Simonson, chief economist for the association, said in a statement. “Employment is up, but the industry would be expanding even more rapidly if contractors could find enough qualified workers.”
Nationally, construction employment rose 4.2 percent over the year.
California added the most construction jobs over the year at 41,000 jobs, 5.9 percent, the association said. Hawaii added the highest percentage of new construction jobs during the past year at 12.5 percent, 3,900 jobs.
West Virginia lost both the highest percentage and greatest number of construction jobs.

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