R.I. construction employment falls

PROVIDENCE – Construction employment in Rhode Island dropped 5.7 percent in August compared with the same month last year, the Associated General Contractors of America said last week.
The trade association said the industry employed 15,000 people in August, down from 15,900 as seen in August 2010. The association said that six states experienced sharper drops in employment.
Across the United States, 26 states and the District of Columbia saw gains in construction employment. Twenty-four states saw drops in employment.
“There is no clear pattern of improvement in construction employment, although the industry is no longer in free fall,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Just as a few states have settled into a pattern of consistently adding construction jobs, a similar number seem to be consistently losing jobs.”