Data from a New York Building Congress analysis of New York State Department of Labor shows that employment levels in New York City’s construction industry has reached its highest level in more than 40 years. New York City produced 138,200 construction jobs in 2015, which was a 7 percent increase from 2014, when the figure was just 129,100 jobs. Last year marked the fourth consecutive year of job growth and the highest level of construction employment in the city since 1975. The previous record for employed construction workers was 131,800 in 2008. The Building Congress estimates construction employment will increase to 147,100 jobs in 2016, which would reflect a 6.4 percent boost from 2015.
“Each of the cranes currently dotting the New York City skyline represents thousands of jobs for local construction workers, three-quarters of whom live in one of the five boroughs,” said Building Congress President Richard T. Anderson. “With nearly $40 billion in construction spending last year and the Building Congress forecasting more of the same this year and next, we should expect the construction industry to be a major driver of jobs for the foreseeable future.”
