October is Careers in Construction Month, which creates the perfect opportunity to highlight the many career paths the construction industry provides for people with a variety of experience, education and expertise. And especially given the estimated 500,000 open construction positions in the United States right now, workforce development and filling the skills gap remains a key priority for ABC and its members.

Start your journey to world-class safety today with ABC’s Safety Training Evaluation Process. STEP is a safety benchmarking and improvement tool that dramatically improves safety performance among construction industry participants, regardless of company size or type of work. Every ABC member wants to send its workers home safely every night. 

On Oct. 3, a federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s plan to end Temporary Protected Status for more than 300,000 immigrants from El Salvador, Haiti, Nicaragua and Sudan. This preliminary injunction will allow the merits of the case in Ramos v. Nielsen to be considered—whether these immigrants face irreparable harm if the designation is eliminated. Some of these immigrants have spent decades in the United States under the TPS designation.

FindContractors.com is an excellent tool to help members find and do business with other members. Members can search for an ABC contractor, supplier or other construction professional by name, chapter, location, sales volume or type of construction. Plus, now members are recognized for earning an Excellence in Construction® Award within the last three years. Learn more about EIC at abc.org/eic.

The U.S. construction industry added 23,000 net new positions in September, according to an ABC analysis of data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.During the last 12 months, the industry has added 315,000 net new jobs, an increase of 4.5 percent. Nonresidential construction employment expanded by 18,600 net jobs on a monthly basis, while the residential sector added just 4,400 net positions.Though construction unemployment rose to 4.1 percent in September, it remains low by historical standards. National unemployment dropped to 3.7 percent across all industries, the lowest rate since December 1969.

ABC is pleased to announce the launch of a WeBuildAmerica.com, a brand-new, mobile-friendly website focused on the fast-approaching November elections. The site features helpful videos and information on the importance of voting, key issues in this election cycle, how to register to vote and personalized voter guides. Members can easily customize the WeBuildAmerica.com website to include a company logo as well as personalize the website experience. Encourage your colleagues and employees to visit the site to get up to speed before Election Day.

On Sept. 28, ABC submitted comments to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration on its recent proposal to remove certain provisions of the 2016 Electronic Injury Reporting and Anti-Retaliation final rule, officially titled Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses. ABC also commented as a member of the Coalition for Workplace Safety.

Estimated August construction unemployment rates fell nationally and in every state except Colorado on a year-over-year basis, according to an analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data released by ABC. The August 2018 not seasonally adjusted national construction unemployment rate fell 1.3 percent from a year ago to 3.4 percent. At the same time, the construction industry employed 287,000 more workers nationally compared to August 2017, according to BLS statistics.

October is Careers in Construction Month, creating the perfect opportunity to highlight the many career opportunities within the construction industry—especially given the currently estimated 500,000 open construction positions in the United States. ABC National has developed outreach materials including a draft letter to the editor, social media assets to share and educational resources to help ABC members and volunteers promote Careers in Construction Month in local markets throughout the month.

Sixteen teams of four undergraduate students from colleges and universities nationwide put their construction project leadership skills to the test during ABC’s annual Construction Management Competition at ABC Convention 2018 in Long Beach, Calif. Teams were assigned to manage the completion of the same mock project over two days. First-, second- and third-place awards in five categories were presented to the winners at the Careers in Construction Awards at the convention’s conclusion on March 22. Watch highlights here!