New York City—The Marcum Commercial Construction Index for the first quarter of 2020 reports an industry suffering the adverse effects of COVID-19. Construction employment fell by nearly one million jobs from March to April 2020, a decrease of 12.8%. The industry’s unemployment rate increased from 6.9% in March to 16.6% in April, the highest level since early

New York City launched phase one of its reopening plan this week, including the restart of all construction projects deemed nonessential. City officials estimate this applies to approximately 23,000 construction sites.

The news is long awaited for many construction executives and management teams—since March, the only construction projects allowed to continue on schedule were those deemed essential (health care, infrastructure updates, etc.). 

Last week, President Trump signed into law a new bill that effectively relaxes Paycheck Protection Program loan requirements for many small businesses—the Paycheck Protection Forgiveness Act. 

The law allows businesses a bit more leeway concerning where the money coming from the loans, part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, are spent, as well as a few other key points. Here's what you need to know: 

WASHINGTON—The construction industry added 464,000 net new jobs in May, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. May represented the largest monthly increase in construction jobs since the government began tracking employment in 1939, a drastic improvement from April, which recorded the industry’s largest month-over-month job loss.