Steel Markets
February 3, 2021
Construction Employment Falls in More than Half of Metro Areas in 2020
Written by Sandy Williams
The U.S. is experiencing a housing construction boom, but nonresidential construction projects are dwindling as pre-pandemic starts are completed and new projects are put on hold, said the Associated General Contractors of America. As a result, more than half of metro areas reported a decline in construction employment from December 2019 to December 2020.
“A dearth of new construction work is forcing more and more contractors to lay off employees once they complete projects started before the pandemic hit in early 2020,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Private nonresidential construction spending tumbled 10% from December 2019 to December 2020 and public work has been slowing since last March, according to recent Census Bureau data.”
