Members of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) responding to the organisation’s latest State of Trade Survey for the fourth quarter of 2005 reported an almost unprecedented weakening of total workload as well as of expected new work in the first three months of this year.
Overall, 28% of respondents reported a higher workload in the last three months of 2005 compared with the previous quarter - but this was outweighed by the 38% who said their workloads had fallen. The resulting negative balance of 10 'lower' vs 'higher' is the largest deficit reported by the FMB survey since 1999.
The drop in workload was reported across all types of work - housing and non-housing, public and private sector, newbuild and repair, maintenance and improvement (RM&I). The biggest decreases were seen in RM&I - the staple work of two-thirds of the FMB’s small and medium-sized builder members.
There were, however, some bright breaks in the clouds. Respondents in three of the nine Government Office Regions in England reported healthier workloads in the fourth quarter. The North East and North West both saw a large turnaround from negative balances in the previous survey. The North West also reported by far the largest regional improvement in employment. In London, more than half the respondents reported increased workloads compared with a third seeing a decrease, giving easily the highest positive regional balance in work levels.
The weakest regional workload results were in the West Midlands - where a quarter reported more work but over half reported a drop, giving a negative balance of 27, and in the South West (down 26 on balance). However, it was the Eastern region that fared worst on employment, with 15% taking on more people compared with 41% employing fewer staff.
Commenting on the latest survey findings, Ian Davis, FMB director general, said: "Given the British climate, it’s not uncommon to see reports of lower actual and expected workloads during the winter months, and the fact that some of the regions still managed very positive results should not be ignored. However, when overall workloads and work prospects are falling across all types of construction, this is bound to be a cause for concern."
"It is no surprise that FMB members expressed such concern in terms of repeated calls for a reduction in VAT on home improvements and worries about the increasing cost of compliance with new or amended laws and regulations. These are, of course, important issues which the FMB is continuing to pursue on our members' behalf."
First posted: 30 January 2006. Last modified: 31 January 2006.
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