Take a look around you right now. Go ahead – it’ll just take a moment. What did you see? Walls? Buildings? Houses? Skyscrapers? Unless you’re out in the middle of an open meadow, there’s a good chance that at least one thing near you at this very second is there thanks to the efforts of the construction industry.
Interesting Construction Industry Statistics
December 2013 construction in the United States alone was valued at $930.5 billion.
The growth in the United States in the last 12 months has been higher than other economic growth factors. The industry, in fact, has seen greater than 5% growth when compared to 2012 numbers. Can this level of growth be sustained throughout 2014? Only time will tell.
Three Essential Facts About the Construction Industry
1. As of February 2014, 5.9 million people were employed by the construction industry. In the United States.
2. Despite the high number of employed individuals, the estimated unemployment rate in this industry is over 12%.
3. In January 2014, there were 162,000 listed open jobs within this industry just in the United States.
Takeaway: The construction industry might have a high unemployment rate, but that may be partially due to the reputation of some builders and contractors. Industry professionals are attempting to separate themselves from bad contractors that leave people in the lurch when it comes to a job. With so many open jobs and a high unemployment rate, the only other possibility is that unemployed workers are looking for a higher salary.
Additional Key Facts About the Industry
1. The average worker in the United States in this industry works 38 hours per week for over $26 per hour.
2. The most popular specialization within the construction industry is carpentry.
3. Over 14% of the workers in the construction industry are represented by unions.
4. Union membership equates to about a 3% increase in overall wages per year.
5. Residential construction makes up about 30% of the total construction market.
6. 66% of all construction projects are privately funded in some way.
7. Even though construction revenues and values are up overall, public construction values and revenues are down by an average of 3% from 2012.
Takeaway: Private construction is fueling the industry right now and the tax collections that will come from these private investments will then fuel public construction projects when private projects begin to sag once again. The biggest dip in construction revenues and value comes from highway projects, down nearly 8% in total. This means that most communities are focusing on residential or business projects right now more than infrastructure projects unless an emergency, such as a falling bridge, happens to come up. This contraction in the public industry could also account for a portion of the higher-than-usual unemployment rate.
Although millions of people visit Brandon's blog each month, his path to success was not easy. Go here to read his incredible story, "From Disabled and $500k in Debt to a Pro Blogger with 5 Million Monthly Visitors." If you want to send Brandon a quick message, then visit his contact page here.