Construction outlook still bleak

ARLINGTON, Va. – This year will not mark a recovery for the sagging construction industry, a survey of construction firms found.
The Associated General Contractors of America released a survey of about 700 construction firms last week that’s showed only one in 10 expected the industry to rebound in 2010. In Massachusetts, none of the 41 companies surveyed expected the industry to recover this year. But 58 percent thought the market would start to grow in 2011, 34 percent in 2012 and 8 percent in the years after.
The association did not report results for Rhode Island because it received too few responses to its survey, said Brian Turmail, a spokesman for the association.
But the association did report that construction employment in Rhode Island had remained unchanged in December compared with November. However, the analysis of federal employment figures found that employment was down in the Ocean State by 6.9 percent in December compared to a year earlier.
In Massachusetts employment in the industry dropped 1.7 percent from November to December, and 12.7 percent from a year earlier. Nationally, every state saw fewer construction jobs.
“Unfortunately for the industry and for our economy this year’s construction outlook is far from positive,” said Stephen E. Sandherr, the association’s chief executive officer. “As long as the construction industry remains mired in its own depression, broader economic and employment growth will continue to lag.”
The survey said 83 percent of Massachusetts companies reported laying off workers last year and 42 percent reported plans to lay off employees this year, while the same amount reported plans to add staff. No companies reported that money from the federal stimulus has allowed them to add employees.
Nationally, 27 percent of construction firms said they planned to lay off workers, while 57 percent said they expected no change or did not know.