Brickonomics

Christmas sales come to the housing market

It's the run up to Christmas and we're in a recession - well if not technically, we're definitely suffering from the recession - so don't be surprised to see redundancies on the rise and asking prices for homes on the...

Posted by Brian on November 16, 2009 7:56 AM

Construction continues to shed workers at an alarming pace

A further 38,000 construction workers were made redundant in the three months to September according to the latest Government labour market figures. This raises the total of employees shed over the previous 12 months to 177,000. Meanwhile the figures also...

Posted by Brian on November 11, 2009 9:59 AM

111,000 jobs lost to construction... and that is just the start

The latest employment figures make grim reading for the construction industry with the number of workforce jobs plunging by 61,000 in the second quarter of this year. This means that 111,000 jobs have been lost to the industry since they...

Posted by Brian on September 16, 2009 10:07 AM

Redundancies in construction jump to 170,000 over 12 months

The latest employment figures show a continued shocking rate of redundacies in construction with another 42,000 jobs shed from the industry in the second quarter of this year. That makes a total of 170,000 recorded job losses over the past...

Posted by Brian on August 12, 2009 10:05 AM

Average weekly earnings go up in construction

I took a quick glimpse at the Average Weekly Earnings figures out today to see if there was an obvious sign of downward pressure on those employed in construction. Well comparing the average weekly earnings over the three months to...

Posted by Brian on June 24, 2009 10:43 AM

Duff jobs figures pose a threat to construction industry

The official employment figures released today show that the construction industry has lost just 40,000 jobs. That clearly is rubbish. Were the figures accurate and were the construction output figures accurate it would suggest that as the industry has plunged...

Posted by Brian on June 17, 2009 10:18 AM

The orders figures and public spending fears point to industry chaos ahead - need it be so?

The good news is that after the monstrous distraction over the past month cause by raking over expense claims made by MPs we are getting back to debate about things that really will shape our lives - notably how much...

Posted by Brian on June 11, 2009 1:20 PM

Redundancies ravage the construction workforce - 141,000 jobs gone in the past 12 months

The numbers made redundant in construction over the past 12 months have mounted to 141,000, according to the latest set of figures released by the official statisticians at ONS. Almost 100,000 of those redundancies were made in the six months...

Posted by Brian on May 12, 2009 2:51 PM

Construction job vacancies evaporate as recession bites

The latest batch of employment figures provides little comfort to the thousands of construction workers who are now looking for jobs, as vacancies in the industry have plunged deeper. The figures show that in the three months to March this...

Posted by Brian on April 22, 2009 10:04 AM

Are construction's vital job statistics wrong?

Following the release of numbers suggesting construction jobs increased by 47,000 over 2008 I asked for clarification from the statisticians. To my mind and in the view of anyone in the industry I have spoken to these figures were wildly...

Posted by Brian on March 20, 2009 10:06 AM

More than 100,000 construction workers made redundant last year

The latest employment figures provide yet more grim reading for those in construction with the numbers made redundant in the final quarter of last year rocketing to 48,000. The official figures out today show that 109,000 construction employees were made...

Posted by Brian on February 11, 2009 9:49 AM

Lack of grit and the economic crisis

Why is it understandable in the current British economy that councils are running out of grit? That was the thought that came to mind as I walking to work this morning. For me it was an enjoyable walk as the...

Posted by Brian on February 5, 2009 10:25 AM

Construction job vacancies collapse

Record redundancies may be the headline in today's news bulletins and tomorrow's papers as the ranks of the unemployed creep towards 2 million. But in the detail of today's labour market figures of more concern to the thousands of redundant...

Posted by Brian on January 21, 2009 10:49 AM

Spot the difference

I was quick out of the blocks this morning keen and eager to get my hands on the latest construction output figures. Sad really, but it keeps me happy. Until this morning that is. Hot on 9:30 I downloaded the...

Posted by Brian on December 5, 2008 11:29 AM

Construction redundancies hit 10-year high and job vacancies drop by a third

The rapidly worsening headline figures for UK jobs are worrying enough for us all. It is a sobering thought to contemplate the pain of 100,000 fewer in fulltime employment and a leap of 140,000 in the number of unemployed over...

Posted by Brian on November 13, 2008 4:03 PM