Construction's unemployment rate rose slightly in October, to 17.3% from September's 17.2%, but the good news was that it was better than October 2009's 18.7%. The Bureau of Labor Statistics' latest monthly employment report, released on Nov. 5, also shows that construction posted an increase in jobs for the month, though the gain was only 5,000. The BLS jobless rate figures for individual industries are not adjusted for seasonal swings. For the highly seasonal construction industry, the rates usually worsen in cold-weather months, when work slows down. Thus, the year-over-year comparisons give a better picture of construction employment trends than
Republicans' takeover of the House and gains in the Senate could make major funding increases in infrastructure bills harder to achieve in 2011. With some races still unsettled as of the afternoon of Nov. 3, the GOP had scored a net increase of 60 seats in the House, giving the party a total of 239. Democrats hung on to the Senate, though their majority had dwindled to 51, from 59 prior to the election. Among the Democratic casualties were some House committee chairmen, including James Oberstar (Minn.), head of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and a fixture on that panel
The U.S. Dept. of Transportation has pumped another $2.5 billion into the high-speed-rail funding pipeline and is increasing the flow of actual obligations from its $8-billion first rail round. The moves are good news for the states that won grants and companies pursuing the work. However, whether the new Congress will approve another installment of Photo: California High Speed Rail Authority California won the largest amount, $901.6 million, in the second round of U.S. DOT rail grants. high-speed-rail (HSR) aid in 2011 remains an open question. In announcing the winners of the $2.5-billion round-two competition on Oct. 28, DOT Secretary
Republicans’ newly won majority in the House will result in new committee leaders in the chamber. Construction industry officials say that under those new chairmen, House panels will be focused on curbing spending and holding oversight hearings on the Obama administration’s implementation of federal laws and programs like the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Although the Republican Steering Committee has not yet announced its roster of committee chairman, several current ranking members are expected to take the helm of their panels. For example, Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-Calif.), is expected to assume the chairmanship of the Appropriations Committee. Lewis previously chaired
California and Florida together have won nearly 70% of the $2.5 billion for high-speed rail that the U.S. Dept. of Transportation's awarded in its second round of funds for the new program. Related Links: DOT Sketches Plan For High-Speed Rail 'Excited' High-Speed Rail Builders Get Ready The awards, which DOT announced on Oct. 28, would help fund 54 projects in 23 states. The latest awards follow an initial, $8 billion in DOT high-speed-rail aid, whose winners were selected in January. The first-round money came from the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. For the newly announced grants, DOT received 132
A trade squabble has broken out between the U.S. and China over government assistance for solar and wind power and other “green” technologies. The U.S. made the first move with the Oct. 15 announcement by U.S. Trade Rep. Ron Kirk that his office is launching an investigation into whether China engaged in unfair practices regarding its support to renewable-energy programs. Kirk’s action, under Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act, came in response to a petition filed by the United Steelworkers (USW) union on Sept. 9. The USW contends that China has carried out a range of actions that run
What’s ahead for TIGER grants? With its latest round of Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant awards, announced on Oct. 20, the U.S. Dept. of Transportation brought good news to state and local agencies that won funds for 75 projects. But DOT disappointed dozens of other agencies whose proposals failed to make the cut. Photo: Courtesey Ned Ahrens, King County Department of Transportation Replacement for Seattle’s 81-year-old South Park Bridge won a $34-million TIGER grant. There is support in Congress to continue the discretionary TIGER grants, which are aimed at projects that will have major national or regional benefits. But
Construction seems to have been safer in 2009, but federal officials are still concerned about getting the truth from employers about injuries. Related Links: The Prize Predicament: Incentives and Jobsite Safety Fatalities Down, But Rate Stays Flat An indicator of construction jobsite safety showed improvement last year, as the number of nonfatal injuries and illnesses—and the rate per 100 workers—declined in 2009, the Labor Dept. has reported. In its latest annual workplace safety report, released on Oct. 21, the department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said that construction injuries and illnesses on the job were down 22% last year, to 251,000.
The U.S. Dept. of Transportation has announced the winners of $600 million in in the second round of Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants for projects that supporters say will have significant national or regional benefits. Photo: King County, Wash. Replacement for Seattle's South Park Bridge gets $34-million TIGER Grant Related Links: TIGER II capital-grant awards and project descriptions The largest grant among the 42 awards was $47.7 million to the city of Atlanta to help finance a $72.2-million, 2.7-mile downtown streetcar line. Other big winners were a plan to unsnarl a freight rail bottleneck in Fort Worth, Texas,
When results are in from the Nov. 2 elections, they are widely predicted to show Republican gains in the House and Senate. Election analysts project that the GOP will win a majority in the House and also pick up Senate seats but not enough to wrest the majority from Democrats. What already was shaping up as a difficult year for the struggling construction industry promises to be even more difficult, as the likelihood of passing strong infrastructure spending measures would be even more remote. Those bills include the delayed reauthorization of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: a
