Construction employment declined 2.5% from the previous quarter dropping 2899 employees. Losses were primarily seasonal. Special Trade (17) decreased by 1382 employees. Painting & Paper Hanging (172), Concrete Work (177) and Excavation Work (1794), which are dependent on favorable weather, declined. Respectively, employment dropped by 452, 655, and 322. Contrary to activity in other subsectors, Electrical Work (173) added 338 employees this quarter. Electrical work is not usually impacted by seasonality. Employment in Heavy Construction (16), dropped 1194, reflecting typical seasonal influences but down from last year’s loss of 1379. General Building (15) incurred a larger than normal loss dropping 323 employees. Residential Building(152) fell 230 employees. All of the loss occurred in single family home contractors and was opposed to the gain experienced last year at this time. Nonresidential Building (154) dropped 81 employees.
ANNUAL
Annual growth of 9421 employees and a percent gain of 8.9% makes Construction one of Colorado’s leading industries. Special Trades (17) was the largest growth component of the industry reporting a gain of 7321 employees. Subsectors contributing more than 1000 employees to the phenomenal growth were: Plumbing, Heating & Air-Conditioning (171) up 1955, Electrical Work (173) up 1394 and Masonry, Stonework, Tile Setting & Plastering (174) up 1403. Construction firms are county coded based on their office of operation not where each project takes place. Increased activity as a result of work on the Park Meadows Mall and surrounding area may not be reflected in Douglas County. General Building (15) added 1629 employees over last year. Residential Building covered about half of the increase and was exclusive to single family homes. Heavy Construction (16) generated 471 new employees over the year.
Colorado Employment and Wages (ES202) Fourth Quarter 1996
![[]](901e02a4.gif){kind=small}
![[]](90000211.gif){kind=small}
![[]](90000269.gif){kind=small}