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Julie Knight

Contractors in North Carolina remain guarded in their outlook for growth, according to Associated General Contractors' recent survey. Here, construction crews work on the upper concourse at the Greensboro Coliseum.

Catherine Carlock

Reporter- The Business Journal

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North Carolina has lagged other states in its construction employment recovery, and the state isn’t benefiting from the two major sectors boosting construction jobs in other parts of the country — fracking and downstream oil and gas work, according to Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America.

Nationally, contractors are more optimistic about 2014, with few planning to lay off workers and more contractors planning to hire — a trend that’s reflected in North Carolina, according to the AGC’s 2014 construction employment outlook. But while there’s more optimism, the industry has yet to return to pre-recession levels of activity and employment, said Stephen Sandherr, CEO of the Associated General Contractors.

For example, there are still 1.9 million fewer construction workers employed than in 2006, and annual construction spending levels remain about $200 million below peak levels, Sandherr said in a conference call Tuesday morning.

In North Carolina, 100 percent of contractors surveyed said they planned to add five or fewer employees in 2014, and none had plans to lay off workers, the report showed. But 28 percent of contractors said they were having difficulty filling craft worker positions, and 50 percent said they expected it to be more difficult to find and hire those skilled workers in the coming year.

That concern is echoed nationally, the report showed. Many firms are improving pay and benefits to keep qualified staff, Simonson said, but still have concerns about quality training programs for new construction workers.

In North Carolina, 90 percent of contractors felt more optimistic regarding growth in highway work — a higher percentage than contractors in any other state, AGC spokesman Brian Turmail said. Firms are also optimistic about manufacturing construction, with 52 percent of contractors surveyed saying they expected more manufacturing work to come down the pike this year.

But contractors are less enthused regarding the higher education, private office and other public-sector market segments in the state, the report showed.

Catherine Carlock covers commercial and residential real estate, construction, economic development and retailing and restaurants. Contact her at (336) 370-2918.