Labour market

Updated: 21 November 2009

Employment and paid hours in construction drop in the September quarter.

Employment in the construction industry has dropped according to the Quarterly Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS), having been steady in recent quarters.  The September 2009 survey showed a total of 169,600 people employed, 7.2 percent lower than the June 2009 quarter, and 5.1 percent lower than September 2008. Weakness continues in the number of paid hours worked in construction as reported by the Quarterly Employment Survey (QES). Hours worked fell for the fifth consecutive quarter in September 2009, falling by 6.2 percent compared with September 2008. The number of hours worked in September 2009 was down to 3.9 million from 4.2 million hours in September 2008. This follows a decline of 8.2 percent from June 2008 to June 2009. 

Figure 3: Number of People Employed in the Construction Industry (to September 2009)

Source: Statistics New Zealand, HLFS

The number of people leaving New Zealand who are employed in construction and building-related trades has slowed in recent months. In the year to September 2009, there was a net outflow of 190 building and construction workers, 78.2 percent less than the net loss of 870 workers in the year to September 2008. This follows declines of 57.6 percent in the year to August 2009, and 34.0 percent in the year to July 2009. Having reached a peak of 958 in the year to November 2008, net outflows of construction and building-related workers currently stand at levels similar to those of mid-2007. 

While recent data had shown signs of stabilisation in hours worked and numbers employed in construction, declines in the most recent labour surveys indicate the sector remains vulnerable. The continuing trend of fewer workers leaving New Zealand lends support to the expectation of a pickup in construction activity in early 2010, although it may also reflect a cooling of the housing market in Australia.