CNY construction employment slips year-over-year in September

Central New York’s construction employment levels slipped over a 12-month period closing at the end of September, according to a recent analysis from the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC).

Ithaca was the only metropolitan area in the region that didn’t lose construction employment between September of 2011 and September 2012. Its employment rolls held steady with 1,200 people working in the construction, mining, and logging industries.

Utica-Rome was saddled with the highest portion of job losses, dropping 8 percent of its construction workforce, or 300 workers. The area had 3,300 workers in the industry as of September.

The Binghamton and Syracuse areas both lost 6 percent of their construction workers. Binghamton shed 300 workers to 4,500, while Syracuse lost 800 workers to 11,900. And construction employment fell 5 percent, or 100 workers, in Elmira to 2,000.

“A lot of project owners appear to be taking a time-out until Washington officials can set tax rates for next year and figure out what to do about the planned sequestration cuts,” AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson said in a news release. “Few businesses are going to invest in major new projects when they don’t even know what they will be paying in taxes next year or what direction the economy will be heading.”

Nationally, year-over-year construction employment eroded in 160 out of 337 metropolitan areas. It was stagnant in 52 and increased in 125.

Hurricane Sandy isn’t likely to cause an industry-wide boom, Simonson added.

“We are likely to see localized spikes in construction employment throughout November and the winter as crews are mobilized to rebuild communities damaged by Hurricane Sandy,” he said. “However, the overall impact of reconstruction work on construction employment is likely to be minimal, as planned projects in hurricane-damaged communities are put on hold while people rebuild.”

Contact Seltzer at rseltzer@cnybj.com