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Report: S.C. construction employment rebounded in 2020

Staff Report //February 17, 2021//

Report: S.C. construction employment rebounded in 2020

Staff Report //February 17, 2021//

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A year-end report from LCK Construction Services and Colliers South Carolina found that statewide construction starts in key sectors lagged $222 million below 2019 totals, but the state’s construction workforce exceeded 2019 numbers by more than 5,000 workers after third- and fourth-quarter gains.

New construction activity began trending upward during the fourth quarter of 2020 after a mid-year decline, the report (.pdf) found. Two construction sectors, multifamily and manufacturing, increased, with a start growth of 42% and 35%, respectively, leading to a combined $913 million in new construction projects. Commercial construction starts grew during the fourth quarter of 2020.

As of December 2020, South Carolina had 115,000 construction workers, 5,800 more than in December 2019, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The state’s workforce declined by 6% in April but recouped job losses in September.  

The report noted that material costs are projected to continue to increase in 2021. Volatility re-entered the market in March 2020, as product shortages and material price increases began to be felt. While all materials saw price increases in the third and fourth quarters of 2020, the report noted “wildly volatile” lumber pricing and continued rising steel prices.  

That trend is echoed nationally. An analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America found that price increases and delivery delays are causing hardships for construction firms already facing challenges in completing projects because of crews limited by illness or new worksite procedures stemming from the pandemic.

The AGC found that a government index that measures the selling price for materials and services used in new, nonresidential construction increased 2.5% from December to January and 10.7% since April.

“The extreme price increases, as reflected in today’s producer price index report and other sources, are harming contractors on existing projects and making it difficult to bid new work at a profitable level,” Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist, said in a Wednesday news release. “While contractors have kept bids nearly flat until now, project owners and budget officials should anticipate the prospect that contractors will have to pass along their higher costs in upcoming bids.”

The LCK/Colliers report called the 2021 industry outlook “apprehensively optimistic,” buoyed by increased fourth quarter 2020 starts which bolstered South Carolina’s construction workforce. The Columbia market totaled 18,200 workers in December 2020, a 4.6% increase over 2019, with rebounds in May and June offsetting a 9.25% workforce reduction in April.  

Three major sectors in the Columbia market – multifamily, manufacturing and education – saw an uptick in construction starts during 2020, while starts in the commercial, health care and government buildings sectors were down. Education starts in 2020 totaled $209 million, with building programs underway in Lexington School District 1 and Richland School District 2.

The report noted that sitework for Mark Anthony Brewing’s 1 million-square-foot production facility, which began in late 2020 in Richland County, will have a major effect on 2021 construction starts in the Columbia market.

The report also noted decreases in construction starts in Charleston’s commercial and education sectors and a strong increase in multifamily projects. The Charleston market employed 22,000 workers in December 2020, an increase of 1.19% over the past year.

In the Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin metropolitan area, Greenville recorded 2020 growth in commercial projects as well as the multifamily, manufacturing and health care sectors. Greenville’s market employed 19,500 workers in December 2020, a 1.12% increase from the past year.  

The Spartanburg market saw growth in the multifamily and manufacturing sectors.

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