Despite the toughest market in a generation, shrinking pay raises and numerous layoffs in the industry, many construction firms remain a great place to work, according to Fortune Magazine’s annual list of “100 Best Companies To Work For.” The list, published in Fortune’s Feb. 7 issue, is based on extensive employee surveys, analyses of company personnel policies and benefits as well as a “culture audit.” Highest ranking among industry firms is Redwood City, Calif.-based contractor DPR Construction, which ranked No. 22, moving up from No. 57 last year. Other general contractors and construction managers to make the list were Denver-based PCL Construction at No. 38, Dallas-based Balfour Beatty Construction at No. 40 and Providence, R.I.-based Gilbane at No. 76. Dallas-based mechanical contractor TDIndustries, which has been on the list for many years, ranked No. 45. Denver-based engineer-constructor CH2M-Hill returned to the list this year at No. 90. Ironically, these high rankings came despite “negative job growth” at five of the companies, ranging from 4% at PCL to 12% at CH2M-Hill. The only construction firm on the list that increased its number of employees was Balfour Beatty Construction. Balfour Beatty’s employment numbers were boosted by the acquisition of SpawMaxwell last spring as well as the addition of a number of other construction subsidiaries it inherited in the wake of its U.K. parent company’s reorganization of its U.S. operations.