Oct. R.I. construction employment is down

PROVIDENCE – Construction employment in the Providence metropolitan area dipped 5 percent in October compared with the same month last year, the Associated General Contractors of America said last week.
The association said the construction industry employed 20,200 in the region, which includes Providence, Fall River, Warwick and the surrounding areas. That was down 1,000 jobs from last October. The contractors said that 225 metro areas lost jobs. Another 67 areas showed increases in employment while 113 remained level.
“It looks like the stimulus, military-base realignment and power projects have put a halt to some of the dramatic construction job losses many metro areas have been experiencing,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “But even as construction employment has stabilized in some areas … construction job losses are still far too numerous.” &#8226