Maine slides to 48th in construction job growth, says AGC
AUGUSTA — Maine is falling behind the rest of the nation in construction jobs. Recent employment statistics from the Association of General Contractors ranked Maine 48th in the country for construction job growth.
The ranking is a result of 700 hundred fewer construction workers being employed at Maine companies compared to this time last year.
During the same time period other New England neighbors added jobs, with New Hampshire gaining 1,300, Massachusetts 4,700, and Vermont 500. “Falling behind the rest of nation is tough enough, but seeing our neighboring New England states adding jobs while Maine is losing them in large numbers is discouraging,” said Matthew Marks, CEO of The Associated General Contractors of Maine.
The downward trend continues a two-month slide as Maine joins only 20 other states in the country that have seen job losses during this time of economic recovery. The six states that added the highest percentage of construction workers in the month of May alone were all in the Northeast, a region that has seen less growth in recent years than other parts of the country. “Maine is not only missing an opportunity to add jobs, but also the chance to address the laundry list of infrastructure projects that continues to grow in length,” said Marks.
This announcement comes on the heels of Cianbro Corporation announcing that they will hire 300 workers in order to meet private sector demand. “Being optimistic about the economy isn’t enough to ensure our state is fostering the future pool of skilled workers we will need when a decision is finally made to address the tremendous backlog of infrastructure challenges. We are at a crossroads and it’s time for a big investment in Maine. We certainly don’t want to fall to 50th in the country,” said Marks.
Chartered in 1951, the Associated General Contractors (AGC) of Maine is the state’s largest construction industry trade association. The Association maintains an office in Augusta and has 180 members statewide.