Building Alaska bouys economy.

• Author: McCorkle, Vern C.
• Position: Brief Article - Statistical Data Included

Up more than 7 percent in the past 12 months, employment in the construction trades and support services totals slightly more than 20,000 jobs to lead growth and stability among several economic sectors in the Great Land.

One does not need to "read up" on construction in urban or rural Alaska to know that a whole lot of building is going on out there. It is hard to stand at the intersection of almost any street or rural roadway, and not be able look in one direction or another and see a tower crane on the horizon, a truck hauling excavated material out or fill material in, or the steel skeleton of a new building going up somewhere.

Thanks to Herman Nelsons and other portable heating systems, and building under plastic techniques, many builders who worked all winter have transitioned right into the present summer (albeit wet!) season. Construction is becoming a four-season contributor to our economy.

By comparison to recent years, construction unemployment rates are low--dangerously low for some crafts and trades. In fact, a few contractors are worried about having to hire Outside, causing an in-migration of workers for the industry for the first time in a long time.

There are a number of reasons why construction opportunities will remain high for at least the next two to three years. One is the upbeat notion, and for many a belief, that new gas and oil transmission lines will break out of their present talk-study strategies and into a design-build mode sooner rather than later.

Another reason why construction industry employment will continue to run high is that help will be needed not only from professional, skilled and support system workers, but also from other disciplines such as architectural design and supervision, construction management and landscaping, and...