A recovery of sorts seems to be happening in America. With unemployment dipping below 10% for the first time in months and factory orders increasing at a faster than expected rate, we have some reasons for cheer. This surge in factory orders bodes well for an economic turnaround.

Construction, on the other hand, acts as a lagging indicator and the pain we now feel doesn’t seem likely to get better in the short term. ENR noted that the construction industry unemployment rate hit 24.7% in January, the highest since February 1983.

I was standing in an unemployment line for a couple of weeks just about exactly 26 years ago and it was unpleasant. For those of you in that situation, I offer some of the best wisdom about construction industry trends I’ve ever heard:

“When things are good, they aren’t nearly as good as they seem and when things are bad, they aren’t nearly as bad as they seem.”

Finally, keep in mind that everything is relative and depends on your attitude. This Russian proverb sums it up:

“The church is near,
but the road is icy.
The bar is far away,
but I will walk carefully.”

Last year the November unemployment rate was 12.7%, but ENR just reported we are now at 19.4% for construction unemployment. That’s about 1 in 5 construction workers now out of a job. That sucks.

It’s difficult to see what 2010 will bring. Lots of the Owners I work with are considering pulling the trigger on new projects, but wary of the economic recovery. The ability to procure construction financing also keeps some projects from starting.

The ENR article also noted that the federal highway and transit spending looks to decrease about 20% from 2009 to 2010, due to all the stimulus money in 2009.

Let’s hope the entrepreneurial spirit that made America strong will kick into gear. Then Owners will see opportunity outweigh fear and take the risk to move forward.