PROVIDENCE – Construction employment in the Providence-Warwick-Fall River metropolitan area increased 1% year over year to 25,800 jobs in June, according to the Associated General Contractors of America Wednesday.
The 1% growth rate in the Providence metro ranked No. 232 in the nation among 358 metro areas.
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- Construction employment in the Taunton-Middleborough-Norton, Mass., metro area remained unchanged from one-year prior at 3,500 jobs.
- In the New Bedford metro area, construction employment declined 4% year over year (No. 330 in the U.S.) to 2,700 jobs.
- Norwich-New London-Westerly, Conn. metro area construction employment increased 5% year over year to 4,100 jobs. The growth rate ranked No. 15 in the country. The nearby Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, Conn., metro area was among the largest construction employment declines in the country year over year, falling 8%, or 1,600 jobs, to 19,100 jobs in the sector.
The highest construction employment growth rate of any metro in the United States was in the Auburn-Opelika, Ala., metro area, increasing 24% year over year to 3,100 jobs. The highest growth rate in New England was the Portland-South Portland, Maine, metro area, where construction employment increased 8% year over year (No. 35 in the U.S.) to 11,200 jobs.
Construction employment grew in 253 out of 358 metro areas between June 2018 and June 2019. The AGCA noted that a tight construction labor market may have constricted growth.
“Demand for construction remains robust in most metro areas,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “But, with record job openings in construction and the lowest overall unemployment rate since 1969, it is likely even more metros would be adding construction workers if there were enough qualified jobseekers available.”
The Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, Ariz., metro area added the most construction jobs of any metro area in the U.S. year over year, increasing employment by 13,200 jobs, or 11%, to a total of 137,400 jobs.
Chris Bergenheim is the PBN web editor. You may reach him at Bergenheim@PBN.com.
