The Solar Industry Foundation, a business group, says there were 143,000 solar industry workers in the U.S. as of late 2013, and that the fastest growing category is installers, up 22% or 12,500 overall.Depending on the municipality and circumstances, California contractors use electricians or laborers for such installations.So it's not a surprise that competition for work would lead to arguments, which is what has happened at a private school's new campus in San Mateo, Calif. The dispute broke out even though the project general contractor, Devcon Construction Inc., Milpitas., had signed a project labor agreement with the San Mateo County
Related Links: Second URS Employee Links Firing To Nuclear Site Whistleblowing URS Corp. and its unit, Washington River Protection Solutions, have until Sept. 19 to address the U.S. Labor Dept's ruling of “reasonable cause” to believe the firms violated federal whistle-blower rules by wrongfully terminating an employee at the Hanford federal nuclear-waste cleanup site in Washington state who had filed a whistle-blower complaint.The agency on Aug. 19 said WRPS must rehire Shelly Doss, who was laid off in 2011 as an environmental specialist, and pay $220,000 in back wages and damages.In a statement, WRPS says it is reviewing the DOL
Related Links: Link to NSF survey site, Engineers Engaged in Creating Change, on what makes a great engineering workplace: Link to NSF site for men: General Engineering Attraction and Retention Study In what is billed as a “first of its kind” study of why the engineering workforce is shrinking, a team of University of Wisconsin academics released results of a study of more than 5,300 women practitioners that shows that nearly 40% who earned engineering degrees quit the profession or never entered the field, and that inadequate training and development and even hostility from peers and managers workplace are key
Source: CII Related Links: CII Research Graphic: Category Ratings for Late Deliverables Teams Drive Detailed Construction Planning Into the Design Phase Construction Industry Institute Working relationships and team dynamics have emerged as the leading variables affecting the cost and schedule of industrial projects, according to a research report from the Construction Industry Institute, presented at the group's annual conference in Indianapolis on July 21-23.The performance-assessment effort "really could be a game-changer for us and for the whole industry," said J. McM. "Jim" Backes, CII vice chair and Hargrove Engineers + Constructors executive vice president. BackesResearch staff took all the data
The developing Ebola crisis in West Africa has prompted some owners to halt projects in affected countries and evacuate employees and contractors. Others are stepping up measures to cushion their employees from the deadly virus that has killed at least 1,060 people and infected another 1,975 across Liberia, Nigeria, Guinea and Sierra Leone.Some forecasters see economic impacts from the outbreak on affected countries.Luxembourg-based steel and mining company ArcelorMittal announced earlier in August that it has suspended the second phase of its iron-ore expansion project in Liberia meant to increase shipments from 4 million tonne-per-year to 15 million by the end
Related Links: Bureau of Labor Statistics employment rate for July 2014, including data tables Comments and analysis from Associated General Contractors of America Chief Economist Ken Simonson Comments and analysis from Associated Builders and Contractors Chief Economist Anirban Basu Construction’s employment trend stayed positive in July as the industry’s jobless rate declined to 7.5% from June’s 8.2% and the industry gained 22,000 jobs, the Labor Dept. has reported.The Bureau of Labor Statistics' latest monthly employment report, released on Aug. 1, also noted that construction’s rate was well below the July 2013 mark of 9.1%.Nearly all construction sectors picked up jobs
Courtesy of Africa Political & Economic Strategic Center Strike by 200,000 union metalworkers in South Africa had disrupted materials delivery to construction sites and halted some projects. Two of South Africa largest workers unions have called off a crippling strike involving more than 200,000 engineers and mining and metals workers, which had starved construction contractors of materials and disrupted work at two of Africa’s largest coal-fired power plants.The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa accepted terms from the Steel and Engineering Federation of South Africa to raise salaries for the lowest paid workers up to 10% and reached compromise
Related Links: Industry Seeks Creative Solutions to Growing Workforce Shortages Industry Needs to Coordinate Its Workforce Solutions Gone are the days when hosting a booth at the local job fair was all it took to convince high school students to seek a career in construction. After decades of relying on status-quo recruitment methods, the industry is looking to more creative, hands-on approaches to win over the next generation and improve its image as a place to build a career.Over the past two decades, the pipeline of young workers entering the industry has slowed to a trickle. The main problem is
The continuing slow-growth economy has already created tighter budgets and stricter schedules for architects, engineers and contractors. Add in a looming shortage of talent as Baby Boomer employees start to retire in expected record numbers—and the issue escalates into a serious problem.While there seems to be no silver bullet for this dilemma, the good news for firmsis that young professionals often referred to as Generation Y or Millennials, have skills rooted in entrepreneurship, technology, and collaboration—skills that can help counter some of the sector’s emerging challenges. For many Millennials, there is no reminiscing on the industry’s “good times.” Fewer bidding
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