21,000 construction jobs lost in September
ARLINGTON, VA -- The construction industry lost 21,000 jobs in September, placing the industry close to a 14-year employment low, reports a building trade group.
 
In addition, says the Associated General Contractors of America (AGCA), construction unemployment hit a September high of 17.2%.

“It has taken less than four years to erase a decade’s worth of job gains as the industry suffers from declining private, state and local construction demand,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “No other sector of the economy has suffered as much for as long as construction.”

Simonson noted that the 5.6 million people working in construction today is barely higher than the 5.59 million people who were working in construction in August 1996.

Most of September’s construction job losses came from the nonresidential sector as demand for commercial facilities and infrastructure projects remains weak, Simonson noted. Residential construction lost 2,500 jobs last month while nonresidential construction lost 18,100 jobs. Nonresidential specialty trade contractors were the hardest hit, having lost 19,500 jobs in September, the economist added.

Read the Associated General Contractors of America's press release. 

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