ARIZONA METRO AREA SEES BIG BOOST IN CONSTRUCTION EMPLOYMENT

More than 11,500 new construction jobs were filled in the last year in the Arizona metro area made up of Phoenix, Mesa, and Scottsdale, accounting for a 10 percent increase in such employment in the last 12 months.
That job growth, according to a report just issued by the Associated General Contractors of America, ranked as the second greatest industry employment jump in the nation, behind only the Dallas/Plano/Irving, Texas metro area, which saw the addition of 14,200 new construction jobs from May 2017 to May 2018.
Altogether, according to the AGC report, construction employment increased in the past year in 263 out of a reporting 358 metro areas nationally, with only 47 such areas reporting declines. 
Demand for construction employment in the Phoenix, Mesa, and Scottsdale area is expected to increase for the rest of the year, particularly in the home building, mixed-used, and apartment building sectors.
The strong local labor market comes on the heels of a report issued earlier this spring by the U.S. Census Bureau saying that Maricopa County led the nation in 2017 in population growth, adding nearly 74,000 new residents between 2016 and 2017.
Overall, Maricopa County is now the fourth most populous county in the entire country, with some 4.3 million people living there, up from 3.8 million in 2010.
The area’s construction jobs have been additionally fueled by the building of new hospitals, student housing, and offices.

By Garry Boulard