The job losses prediction, from the Federation of Master Builders’ (FMB) latest State of Trade Survey, comes as the latest government figures show consruction sector ouput grew by 0.3% in the final months of 2012.
The FMB suvey shows employment continuing to fall in the last three months of 2012, coupled with the rising cost of overheads.
The survey reveals that builders’ workloads decreased last year and are expected to keep falling at least for the first half of 2013. But the rate of falling workloads and employment in the housing sector did slow in the fourth quarter, with specialist trades actually reporting a rise.
FMB chief executive Brian Berry said the survey results showed the construction outlook was still bleak and the government needed to take action to prevent building jobs being lost.
He said the house construction sector needed supporting by freeing up land, easing planning red tape and pushing investment through the new Business Bank.
“A VAT cut on building work to make homes more energy efficient would also help provide an immediate boost for small builders and have the multiple benefits of boosting the economy, helping householders save money on their fuel bills and reducing carbon emissions,” he said.
