Construction Firms Are Now Looking To Grow As The Sector Stabilises

The latest CIPS/Markit Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) highlighted that construction sector output had grown for the eighth consecutive month in August.

Even though unemployment in the UK has gone back above 2.5 million, optimism in the construction sector is gathering pace as three quarters of firms reveal they will increase employee numbers during the closing months of 2011.

In a survey of construction firms by Bromak, the built environment recruitment specialist, 75 per cent declared their plans to recruit for the remainder of the year.

David Brooks, managing director of Bromak, said: “This is a really positive sign. Too many people have been quick to write off the construction sector without asking the most important people; the business owners and managers. This proves that businesses have a positive outlook and are looking towards growth as we enter 2012, a crucial year for bringing the industry back to pre-recession levels.”

Only 22 per cent of the construction firms surveyed revealed that they were not recruiting for the rest of the year, while three per cent said it was too early to tell.

The recent PMI stated that employment in the sector was at odds with the output growth, with employment numbers down in August against the previous month. This survey reveals that after a difficult summer firms are now looking to grow as the sector stabilises.

David Brooks continued: “There is no getting away from it; the construction sector is volatile but confidence is improving. We have more jobseekers coming to us and are placing more candidates into positions than at any other time this year. With high oil prices and lack of access to credit businesses have started the year cautiously and that careful approach looks to now be paying off as they look to end the year on a high and start 2012 with renewed optimism and confidence.”

Bromak, which places temporary and permanent staff with private and public sector organisations, placed 551 candidates into positions in August 2011, as opposed to only 200 in August 2009, at the height of the economic slump in construction.