Moderate job growth in March: aberration, or sign of the future?

Apr 6, 2018
The March jobs report shows there were 103,000 jobs added in the month, though many economists expected something closer to an additional 175,000. And that very well may be because March was a tough month weather-wise, slowing down things like construction in parts of the country. But could we also be seeing something else going […]

More women are entering the construction trade, but job sites and equipment haven't adapted yet

Mar 26, 2018
From harnesses to heavy-duty gloves to restrooms, construction sites are not prepared for the next generation of construction workers.
Mary Jo Emrick works with James Mescall during a welding class at Austin Community College. 
Courtesy of Montinique Monroe for KUT

Builders battle freezing temps to keep construction boom going

Feb 21, 2018
With tight deadlines, construction often doesn't stop for the weather.
"You just gotta suck it up," said Kai Yee, a laborer in Cleveland, Ohio when asked how he deals with extreme cold. “If [you] can’t do the job, they’ll bring somebody else who can. Everybody’s replaceable.” 
Adrian Ma/ for Marketplace

January home construction jumped 9.7 percent

Feb 16, 2018
Single-family ground-breaking was strong, but construction of multi-family units was even stronger.

On infrastructure, now what? Trump's sudden turn away from public-private model brings uncertainty

Oct 5, 2017
With private money at a record level and projects ready to go, the president decides the partnerships are "more trouble than they're worth," leaving states to make their own deals with investors and to hope for federal funding.
President Donald Trump delivers a speech on June 7, 2017 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Donald Trump spoke about transportation and infrastructure projects. 
Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

Trump's desire for private infrastructure money will narrow his choices to mostly urban projects

Jul 19, 2017
Rural America, which supported Trump in the election, could be left out of water and road building investment as states and the president leverage private investment. Trump's plan offers little detail on federal spending and timing. Adding to the uncertainty, a presidential adviser has indicated that states should help themselves.


Infrastructure renewal work beneath Penn Station in New York. 


 
Kathy Willens/AP

More than 500 infrastructure projects are pitched to Trump, who will favor private money and speed

May 11, 2017
States, unions, campaign advisers and consultants flood the White House with proposals. The president’s pledge to cut regulations and his condition for funding – “If you have a job that you can’t start within 90 days ... it doesn’t help us” – risks leaving critical construction and repair behind.
President Donald Trump uses a chart illustrating the complexity of gaining regulatory approval construction projects during an event at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building April 4, 2017 in Washington, DC.
Win McNamee/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Why construction workers in LA make less than they used to

May 1, 2017
Here's where we talk about diminished unions and immigration.
“Construction employers have been complaining for a while that they can't find enough good people. They haven't as an entire industry raised wages much faster than average, but that may change,” said Los Angeles Times reporter Natalie Kitroeff.
David McNew/Getty Images

When Public Works employed millions

Apr 3, 2017
Mass unemployment during the Great Depression led to hundreds of thousands of infrastructure projects all over America.
Men from all over the United States came to Northern California to find work at Shasta Dam. Construction lasted seven years, from 1938-1945.
courtesy U.S. Bureau of Reclamation

Mega-dams, like Hoover, probably wouldn't be built today

Mar 29, 2017
Dams are costly and have gone out of style. We also know more about their environmental impact.
Hoover Dam in 1936, the year it was completed. The dam was finished two years ahead of schedule and under budget, a feat unlikely to occur today.
Getty Images