“Construction firms continue to add new jobs at a pretty steady clip in most parts of the country,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist, noting that the share of metro areas with construction employment gains was the highest since 2006. “The question is whether declining oil prices, global economic challenges, labor shortages and Washington gridlock will undermine future job gains in the sector.”
Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas, added the largest number of construction jobs in the past year (12,800 jobs, 11%), followed by Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colo. (11,600 jobs, 14%); Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash. (10,100 jobs, 14%); and Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, Texas (8,900 jobs, 5%). The largest percentage gains occurred in Wenatchee, Wash. (38%, 600 jobs); Lake Charles, La. (29%, 3,700 jobs); Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas (27%, 4,700 jobs); Atlantic City-Hammonton, N.J. (25%, 1,000 jobs); and Bay City, Mich. (25%, 200 jobs).
Electrical Wholesaling data shows that electrical contractors generally account for 13% of all construction employment and that each electrical contractor employee accounts for $49,253 in spending on electrical products. Using this data, our estimates for the increase in electrical contractor employment in with the biggest YOY gains in Feb. 2015 were:
- Dallas-Plano-Irving, MSA: +1,664 employees (+$77 million in electrical contractor market potential)
- Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash. MSA: +1,313 employees (+$60.7 million in electrical contractor market potential)
- Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land MSA: +1,157 employees ($+53.5 million in electrical contractor market potential).
