According to the ONS, in June 2011 2,093,000 people were employed in the construction sector, down from 2,158,000 in June 2011, with a net loss of 2,000 jobs etween March and June this year.
Scotland lost 10,000 construction jobs - confirming the fears of a majority of Scottish construction firms that both workloads and workforce would decine in 2011 in a survey conducting by the Scottish Building Federation.
Commenting on the latest ONS figures, Federation Chief Executive Michael Levack said:
“These latest statistics provide worrying evidence of worsening economic conditions as 10,000 Scottish construction workers lost their jobs between April and June this year. Since March 2009, official figures now show the Scottish construction industry has shed 30,000 jobs.
“The industry has recently cast doubt on an apparent spike in industry employment in the course of 2010, which bore little relation to the harsh realities being reported by building firms up and down the country. However, official figures clearly show that the longer term trend in construction jobs is downwards and that should be a matter of real concern to our politicians. We need to see an even stronger emphasis on protecting and consolidating capital investment in construction projects to support the construction industry and start rebuilding employment, skills and capacity.”
"Near-calamitous order figures for the construction industry"
Figures released by the ONS in July show that construction orders fell dramatically in the second quarter of 2011, with overall construction orders down by 16%, while orders for infrastructure were hit even harder, falling by a quarter.
Responding to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg's speech on Tuesday announcing the identification and fast-tracking of 40 major infrastructure projects and describing the UK's water and waste networks as 19th century, the Civil Engineering Contractors Association which represents approximately 80% of the UK civil engineering market, said:
“It’s no secret that investing ininfrastructure is a pretty sure bet in terms of cost-benefit ratios, so today’s speech by Nick Clegg is another welcome sign that the government does appreciate the wider benefits of investing in communications and transport networks. Removing barriers to the flow of investment should help to boost the stuttering economic recovery in the long-term, as well as providing short-term employment and stimulus.
“But while this speech is welcome, with figures just a fortnight ago showing near-calamitous order figures for the construction industry as a whole, a focus on haste is now required. Firms facing collapsing order books and margins squeezed between falling tender prices and soaring costs, literally cannot afford to wait much longer for new work.
“So what is crucial is that these welcome words turn quickly into shovels on the ground. Only then will we see any return of confidence to the construction sector, and hopefully the broader economy, allowing the much-hyped private sector-led recovery to really gain pace.”