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labor
requirement
for federal
office build!
construction

Bulletin No. 1331
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Arthur J. GoldbergT Secretary

BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS
Ewan Clague, Commissioner

labor
requirements
for federal
office building
construction

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Arthur J. Goldberg,Secretary

BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS
Ewan Clague, Commissioner

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Preface

This study of labor requirements for the construction of Federal office
buildings is the third in a series of such studies authorized by the 86th
Congress for various types of construction that might be affected by
Government action. Previous studies were concerned with schools and highways.
Surveys currently underway cover hospitals; the civil works activities of the
Corps of Engineers, such as the construction of dams and levees and dredging
of channels; and several segments of the housing industry (private single
family, public, and college student). Other surveys are in the planning
stages.
The studies are being made by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Division
of Productivity and Technological Developments, under the supervision of
James F. Walker. This report was prepared by Roland V. Murray. Herman J.
Rothberg directed the collection of statistical data and Ronald E. Kutscher
was in charge of the group determining the employment created by the use of
building materials.
The Bureau is grateful to the Public Buildings Service of the General
Services Administration for its cooperation throughout the study, and for
providing much of the basic data for the determination of direct labor
requirements. The Bureau also appreciates the cooperation of the construction
contractors who supplied the materials data on which the estimates for indirect
requirements were based.

CONTENTS

Page
Introduction ..........................................................
1
Nature of survey ....................................................
1
General survey findings ..............................................
3
Building characteristics ..............................................
7
On-site man-hour requirements ........................................
9
Labor requirements in earlier periods ..............................
9
Requirements by occupation ..........................................
11
General and special trade contractors' shares .................. . . 16
The cost of direct w a g e s .................... ........................18
Occupational shares ................................................
20
Off-site employment ..................................................
22
Builders' off-site employment . . . . . . . . ......................
23
Employment in transportation, trade, and service ....................
24
"Last manufacturing stage" employment ..............................
2.
4
Employment in secondary activities ..................................
24
Supplementary employment................
25
Construction t i m e ...................................................... 27
Occupational employment by construction periods ....................
27
Contractor employment by construction period ........................
27
Materials used .............................................. . . . . .
30
Changes in materials..................................
35
Comparisons with school and highway construction ......................
37
Appendix A. Scope and method of s u r v e y ................................
Characteristics of the universe and selection of the sample ........
Man-hour estimates .............................................. . .
On-site man-hours ..................................................
Off-site man-hours .......................................... . . . .
Primary distribution industries employment ..........................
Primary manufacturing employment ....................................
Secondary employment in all industries................................
Total man-hour requirements . . . . . ..............................

39
39
39
41
41
42
42
42
43

Tables
1.
2.
3.
4.

Costs and labor requirements of Federal office building con
struction projects, by selected characteristics, 1959
On-site man-hour requirements per $1,000 of Federal office
building construction contract, by occupation and region, 1959 .
On-site man-hour requirements per $1,000 of post office building
construction contract, by occupation and region, 1959
Apprentice man-hours as a percent of total man-hours worked on
Federal office building construction, by occupation and region,
1959 ..........................................

iii

10
12
13

CONTENTS— Continued

Page
Tables— Continued
5.
6.

10.

Percent of total on-site man-hour requirements for Federal office
building construction, by type of contractor and region, 1959 .
Overtime man-hours as a percent of all man-hours worked in
Federal office building construction, by tenths of total con
struction time and by occupation, 1959 ......................
Average hourly earnings and distribution of on-site earnings on
Federal office building construction, by occupation and region,
1959
Percent of on-site employment for Federal office building con
struction in each tenth of total construction time, by
occupation, 1959
Percent of on-site employment for Federal office building con
struction in each tenth of total construction time, by type of
contractor, 1959
Total cost of material components for each $1,000 of Federal
building construction contract, 1959

29
31

Appendix Table A. Projects included in survey of labor requirements for
the construction of Federal officebuildings, 1959 ..................... 40
Charts
1.
2.
3.

Distribution of 227 man-hours for each $1,000 of Federal building
construction contract, 1959 ..................................
4
Where the Federal building contract construction dollar goes, 1959
6
On-site man-hours of construction labor for each $1,000 of Federal
building construction contract, 1959, by decile of construction
t i m e .......................................................... 26

LABOR REQUIREMENTS FOR FEDERAL OFFICE BUILDING CONSTRUCTION

Introduction

New construction is a major component of the Nation's output of goods and
services and an important source of employment. It creates jobs not only at
the site of employment but also in the many manufacturing, trade, and trans
portation industries which furnish materials required in the construction
process. Because of their far-reaching employment impact, construction pro
ject.s are often regarded as a means of counteracting cyclical unemployment.
To measure the labor requirements for various types of construction, the
Bureau of Labor Statistics has undertaken a series of studies. Federal office
construction was selected for early study in the series for several reasons.
Although not of major importance in the Nation's overall construction activity,
the backlog of needs for Federal office space is growing rapidly with the
increase in population and in Federal responsibilities. By 1975, the total
construction need for this type of building will approach $4 billion, and will
involve possibly several thousand projects, according to estimates made in
1959. 1/ This is in addition to the rather substantial program then underway.
This prospect, coupled with the wide geographical distribution of the needs,
and the direct Federal control over planning and funding, make Federal office
construction an important consideration in any program of public works
construction.
Nature of Survey
This report is based on a survey of 22 Federal building projects con
structed under contract in various localities of the United States by the
Public Buildings Service of the General Services Administration. This con
struction was accomplished within the 3-year period from the fall of 1957 to
the fall of I960. Most of the construction, however, took place in 1959.
(See appendix table A for list.) The buildings were selected as being typical
of those providing office space for civilian functions of the Federal Govern
ment. Although much of the space was designed for use as post offices, the

1/ U.S. Congress, House of Representatives. Independent Offices Appro
priations for I960: Hearings before the Subcommittee of the Committee on
Appropriations (86th Cong., 1st Sess., Washington, Government Printing Office,
1959), pp. 1199-1200.

survey did not include any projects devoted exclusively to this use. This
latter type of building is currently constructed under the sponsorship of the
Post Office Department. 2/
The study was confined to new construction; provision of space by
extension or rehabilitation of existing structures was not included. The
survey did not cover the furnishing and equipping of the buildings, except
for those items which are permanently fixed in place so as to constitute
integral parts of the buildings, such as elevators, communications systems,
and some types of post office and laboratory equipment.
The survey was designed primarily to determine the number of man-hours
represented by a fixed dollar volume ($1,000) of Federal building contract
construction. Man-hours, as defined for the survey, include both on-site
construction employment and the off-site employment required to produce and
deliver the materials used in the construction. Data for on-site labor
include total man-hours for the supervisory, engineering, clerical, and cus
todial employees at the site, as well as those for the workers in each con
struction trade. Data for off-site labor include employment in the off-site
(e.g., office and warehousing) activities of the construction contractors; in
building materials and equipment manufacture and distribution; and finally,
employment in all the other industries which are affected directly or indi
rectly by the production and distribution of building materials from the raw
materials to the final manufacturing stage.
Certain types of employment, however, were not covered by the survey.
The work of preparing the plans and specifications of the projects was
excluded (although a rough supplementary estimate for these functions is pro
vided in a later section of the report). Labor involved in producing office
furniture and equipment was not covered, although the survey did include
built-in laboratory equipment requiring substantial amounts of on-site instal
lation labor. Also excluded was the labor time involved in installations by
public utility employees, as well as any site preparation, landscaping, or
highway work not covered by the construction contract. Finally, employment
created by the respending of the wages and profits of the workers and their
employers— the multiplier effect— was not considered within the scope of the
study.

2/ In general, the Public Buildings Service is responsible for the
construction of federally owned public buildings. Currently, most buildings
designed for exclusive use as post offices are not federally owned but are
built under the sponsorship of the Post Office Department, through its
commercial leasing program. These were not covered in this study.

General Survey Findings

Construction of Federal office buildings in 1959 created a total of 227
man-hours of employment for each $1,000 of construction contract. Of these
man-hours, 97 were for on-site employment in the construction industry, and
130 for various off-site activities. (See chart 1.) The latter covered the
labor required to produce and deliver materials and equipment used by the
on-site workers, plus employment of the contractors in administrative, ware
housing, and other off-site activities. The man-hours were allocated as
follows:
Man-hours per
$1.000 of contract
Percent
Number
Total man-hours ......
Construction:
On-site ..............
Off-site .............
Manufacturing ..........
Transportation .........
Trade and service ......
Other industry employment

227

100

97
10
79
9
20
12

43
4
35
4
9
5

As pointed out in the following section, post offices %/ form a homo
geneous subgroup of the general category of Federal office buildings, and
are therefore occasionally treated separately in this report. On-site
construction man-hours for post office construction were 106 per $1,000 of
construction contract, compared with 97 for all Federal office buildings
studied.
A detailed compilation of the off-site man-hours required in the con
struction of post offices was not made, but rough calculations indicate that
these higher on-site hours were almost balanced by lower off-site hours, so
that the total requirements were nearly identical. (The lower off-site man
hours resulted from a lower materials cost per $1,000 of post office construc
tion and the use of relatively more materials of a less highly fabricated

With space for other Federal activities

Chart !•

Distribution of 227 Man-Hours for Each $1,000

Chart 1. Distribution of 227 Man-Hours for Each $1,000
of Federal Building Construction Contract, 1959

PRIMARY
MAN-HOURS
Transportation,
Trade and Services

(1 69)

Last Manufacturing
Stage
>
k

SECONDARY
MAN-HOURS
Other
Manufacturing

Transportation,
All Other
Trade and Services Industries

(
58)

type.) On the average, the post offices studied cost a little under $1 mil
lion each and required somewhat less than Ig- years to build. Thus during
this period, each project provided continuous work for an average of 4 0
workers at the construction site and, in addition, a slightly greater amount
of employment in off-site activities. L j
During recent years, an average of about $75 million a year has been
spent on all types of Federal administrative buildings. This would indicate
that this construction has been the source of about 9,000 jobs annually—
A,000 at the site of construction and 5,000 off site. The needs previously
mentioned for this construction, however, suggest a potential considerably
above this level.
The survey disclosed rather wide ranges of man-hour and materials
requirements among the individual projects, reflecting differences in type,
purpose, and size of building, geographical location, and local construction
practices. There were also marked variations in such related measures as
average hourly earnings and site wages as percentages of construction cost.
On the average, however, 53 cents of the construction dollar was expended on
materials purchases, and 29 cents for wages to workers at the construction
site, whose earnings averaged $2.98 per hour (chart 2). All of these are
discussed in later sections of this report.
The study of labor requirements provided several types of information
relating to the kinds of material used, the types of employment generated,
the timing of employment, and the share of total employment used by the
various special-trades contractors. These also are discussed in later sections
of this report.

l j The annual employment estimate of construction workers is based on
50 times the 1959 average employment in contract construction work of 35.8
hours a week, as reported in the Bureau’s Earnings and Hours series. For
other types of employment, 2,000 hours were considered a year's employment.

Chart 2.
■

Where the Federal Building Contract
...
- ■ ' ■■

Chart 2. W here the Federal Building Contract
Construction Dollar Goes, 1959

Bricklayers

^ a g e s to O n. S/
_y / o f f e r s : 29.Q(
l other skilled trades
Semi ski I led, and
unskilled

Plumbers
E lectricians

Nonmanual

Carpenters -

All ot.her
materials
Lumber
products
Construction
equipment
usage costs
Elevators and
o ther fixed
bui lding equip
ment

Plumbing and
heating equip*
ment
Reinforcing1
bars and joists
Electrical equip
ment, fixtures, and
wire

Metal windows a n d \
doors
------------- >
Fabricated sheet
metal products
Other metal products _
(except plumbing and heating)

Other stone, clay, and
glass products
Brick, block, tile

Ready-mixed concrete

Matet'o'5'

1 Breakdown not available.
7

Building Characteristics

As previously mentioned, the 22 projects surveyed were typical of con
struction by the Public Buildings Service to provide office and other working
space for Federal agencies. Several types of buildings were represented,
reflecting the need for construction to serve a variety of activities.
Fourteen of the projects were typical Federal buildings. Although each
provided public post office facilities, in addition they contained office
facilities for from 3 to 16 other Federal agencies. Each building contained
at least two stories, exclusive of basement, if any. Typically, the first
floor housed the post office space, with upper floors assigned to other
agencies. Facilities for U.S. courts were commonly provided on the upper
most floor of multistoried buildings. For convenience, this group of buildings
is sometimes referred to, elsewhere in this report, as post office buildings,
although this designation is not precise.
Three of the five Federal office buildings housed various local or
regional Federal activities and contained no public-use post office space.
The two other Federal office building projects were unique. One was the
complex of buildings comprising the headquarters for the Bureau of Old-Age
and Survivors Insurance in Baltimore, Md., housing the central operations of
the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Program, and containing what
was, at least at the time of construction, reported to be the largest elec
tronic data-processing unit in the world. The other was the Communicable
Disease Center in Atlanta, Ga., housing administrative, laboratory, conference,
instruction, and related facilities of the U.S. Public Health Service. An
additional three projects were laboratory-office buildings providing facili
ties for soils research activities of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Total and unit costs of these elements of the sample are tabulated
below:
Number of
projects
Total .........................
Post office buildings ...........
Federal office buildings:
OASI Headquarters .............
Communicable Disease Center ....
Other .........................
Laboratory-office buildings .....

Total cost

Cost per
square foot

I60.AA6.085
17,791,531

118.80
19. A7

2A,172,301
9,965,A33
7,A23,263
1,093,557

16.95
25.52
16.56
18.92

The unit costs reflect, among other factors, the characteristics of the
projects; for example, the relative simplicity of the OASI building toward
one extreme, and unique installations of the Communicable Center at the other.
Ten of the post office buildings and four of the Federal office buildings,
including the Communicable Disease Center, were built under the lease-purchase
program. j>/ This relatively short-lived program provided for the construction
of buildings to Federal specifications by private investors. The buildings
were then to be purchased by the Federal Government through periodic payments
over a specified number of years. Projects constructed under that program,
as administered, were unusual only with respect to funding, and not with
respect to construction features or practices. The other projects in the
sample were funded by the usual method of direct appropriation of Federal
moneys.
Despite the variation in size and function of the sample projects, there
was considerable uniformity in some construction features. Structural framing
was commonly of reinforced concrete, although five of the smaller buildings
had framing entirely of steel, or steel in conjunction with load-bearing
masonry. ,In each building, masonry was used extensively in the exterior walls;
these were generally of face brick, with a backing of common brick, concrete
block, or clay tile. Extensive use was made of exterior trim, however, in
the form of stone (granite, limestone, and marble), metal (aluminum and steel),
glass, tile, and enameled steel panels. In the more monumental types of
buildings, large areas, particularly at the base, were faced with stone.
Roofs were generally of poured concrete, with uniformly a built-up composition
surface. Floors were of poured concrete, without exception. Asphalt tile was
by far the most common floor covering, although other materials were used for
special purposes, such as terrazzo in public traffic areas and cork tile in
the courtrooms. Almost all permanent interior walls were plastered, but there
was extensive use of drywall construction on steel studs for movable parti
tioning. Ceilings were either of plaster or acoustical tile. Most buildings
had aluminum windows; a few used steel, particularly in security areas; only
one used wood sash and trim. Central air conditioning was practically univer
sal. Elevators were provided for all buildings of more than two stories;
there were, however, no elevators in two story buildings, although shafts for
later installation were provided. Fluorescent lighting was standard.

j/ Not to be confused with the commercial leasing program mentioned in
j
footnote 2.

On-Site Man-Hour Requirements

The average number of man-hours required at the construction site was
97.1 per $1,000 of construction contract for all projects. This figure is
heavily influenced, however, by the very low requirements— 83. A man-hours
per $1,000— for the 0A3I building, a very large building of relatively simple
design, on which maximum benefits of the use of laborsaving equipment and
organization were possible. Requirements on other individual projects ranged
upward from the 0ASI figure, with 10 projects included in a range of 100-110;
the median requirement was 107.6 man-hours per $1,000 of construction con
tract. Requirements for the more homogeneous group of post office buildings
showed almost as great a range, but the average (weighted average) require
ments of 106.5 did not differ markedly from the median requirement of 107.6
on the 1U projects.
Table 1 presents several measures related to labor requirements, by such
categories as type, size, and location of building. One relationship that
appears significant is the almost consistent decrease in man-hour requirements
with the increase in cost of project. This relationship held true for the
post office sample, as well as the overall sample. This is the factor which
influences some of the differences noted in other breakdowns. Thus, the lower
requirements for projects located in metropolitan areas reflect the fact that
these projects averaged several times as large as those in nonmetropolitan
areas. Similarly, the lower requirements for multistory projects are due to
the fact that these were invariably the larger projects. Even on a regional
basis, the regions having the larger projects tend to have lower man-hour
requirements, despite other regional influences.
Labor Requirements in Earlier Periods
It would be of considerable interest to compare labor requirements for
current Federal building construction with requirements for previous periods.
Unfortunately, only a limited amount of information is available and it cannot
readily be used for comparison with current data. The two major problems are
the change in cost (price) of construction and changes in physical
specifications.
Changes in costs of materials and of labor, and of the relative propor
tions of each, affect the total price of construction. Adequate price indexes
are not available for adjusting satisfactorily dollar values of building
construction costs over periods of time. However, a very rough adjustment for
price change indicates that on-site man-hours per $1,000 (in constant prices)
of Federal building construction have declined by approximately one-sixth in
the past 20 years. 6/

6/ Based on unpublished BLS data for public works projects built in the
late 1930's.

10
Table 1.

Costs and Labor Requirements of Federal Office Building Construction Projects, by Selected
Characteristics, 1959
Man-hours per—
Characteristics

Number
of
projects

Cost per
square
foot

$1,000
of
cost

1,000
square
feet

Average
hourly
earnings

Percent of cost
On-site
wages

Materials

All p r o jects ...... ................. .

$18.80

97.1

1.826

$2.98

29.0

53.3

Post office buildings 1/ ............
Federal office buildings ............
OASI Headquarters .................
Communicable Disease Center .......
Other (general use) ...............
Laboratory-office buildings .........

14
5
1
1
3
3

19.47
18.35
16.95
25.52
16.56
18.92

106.5
90.2
83.4
101.0
98.0
106.2

2,073
1,656
1,414
2,578
1,623
2,009

2.90
3.07
3.09
2.93
3.20
2.46

30.9
27.7
25.8
29.6
31.4
26.1

50.6
55.2
56.4
52.8
54.6
49.6

8
5
4
2
2
1

18.60
20.19
20.95
16.34
21.35
16.95

115.7
111.3
108.4
95.7
97.6
83.4

2,153
2,248
2,271
1,565
2,084
1,414

2.49
2.70
2.99
3.23
3.06
3.09

28.8
30.1
32.4
30.9
29.9
25.8

49.9
52.6
48.8
54.6
52.5
56.4

6
3
4

18.94
20.02
20.95

117.7
111.0
108.4

2,229
2,223
2,271

2.51
2.67
2.99

29.6
29.7
32.4
—

49.6
53.0
48.8

1
—

17.42
—

93.0
—

1,620
—

3.26
—

30.3
—

52.1
—

1 or 2 stories (above ground) .......
Post office buildings 1/ ..........
O t h e r .......... ...................
3 or more stories (above ground) •••••
Post office buildings 1/ ..........
O t h e r ..... ........................

12
8
4
10
6
4

19.18
19.20
19.08
18.74
19.58
18.34

121.9
125.0
110.9
93.0
99.3
89.7

2,338
2,401
2,116
1,742
1,944
1,646

2.57
2.56
2.61
3.07
3.07
3.07

31.3
32.0
29.0
28.6
30.5
27.6

50.9
51.0
50.7
53.6
50.5
55.3

Metropolitan area ...................
Post office buildings 1 / ........ ..
Other .............................
Nonmetropolitan area ................
Post office buildings 1/ ...........
Other .............................

8
3
5
14
11
3

18.44
18.82
18.33
19.90
19.96
19.41

92.3
100.8
89.9
110.5
110.4
111.0

1,702
1,897
1,647
2,199
2,205
2,154

3.10
3.16
3.08
2.71
2.74
2.51

28.6
31.9
27.7
30.0
30.2
27.9

54.0
50.1
55.2
51.1
51.0
51.7

All projects 2/:
Northeast ..........................
North Central .....................
South ..................... .........
West ..............................

2
7
11
2

17.34
20.35
18.83
14.98

110.4
100.2
96.0
89.2

1,914
2,040
1,807
1,336

2.93
3.15
2.90
3.22

32.4
31.5
27.9
28.7

45.5
50.1
54.4
58.0

2
6
6

17.34
20.27
18.89

110.4
100.2
115.7

1,914
2,031
2,185

2.93
3.16
2.52

32.4
31.7
29.1

45.5
50.2
52.7

Construction cost group
(in thousands):
All projects:
$500 and under .................
§501-$1,000 .....................
|l,001-$2,500 ...................
$2,501-$5,000 ...................
$5,001-$10,000 ..................
$10,001 and o v e r ......... .......
Post office buildings l/: .........
$500 and under ..................
#501-$L,000 .....................
$l,001-$2,500 ...................
$2,501-$5,000 ...................
$5,001-110,000 ..................
$10,001 and over ................

Post office buildings l/:
Northeast .........................
North C e n t r a l .......... ...........
S o u t h ....... ......................
West ..............................

l/
2/

—

With space for other Federal activities,
For a list of States included in each region, see appendix A

—

This decrease reflects two chief factors. One is the efficiency
resulting from increased mechanization of tools and of materials-handling
equipment. The other is the transfer of some operations from site to shop,
as in the case of concrete batching amd mixing, and some pipe and duct work.
This reduces on-site man-hours per dollar of cost, even though it may not
reduce overall hours.
It is interesting to note that the decrease over the 20 years in site
man-hours appears to be only about half as large for Federal buildings as for
schools. 7/ Although too much significance should not be attached to the
precise degree of difference, because of a lack of comparable data over the
period, it does appear that the decreases in requirements for the two types
of construction are in reasonable relation.
For some time, the rapidly expanding school population has brought great
pressures on local communities to provide additional classrooms as rapidly
and as cheaply as possible. Architects, materials suppliers, and contractors
have cooperated in providing construction using a minimum amount of hand
labor and heavy materials handling and a large amount of subassemblies and
prefabricated items. No such extreme pressures on cost and speed have been
exerted for Federal office building construction. Moreover, the kind of
construction typical of the m o d e m school would not be considered appropriate
for Federal buildings, particularly public-use buildings, where a somewhat
monumental quality has been traditional, and where emphasis is on those
features which lend an appearance of solidity and permanence. Hence there
has been continued use in Federal buildings of large areas of exterior and
interior stone work, and interior plastered walls, as compared with the
lighter exteriors and the interior dry walls and bare masonry walls of schools.
Requirements by Occupation
The distribution of man-hour employment by broad area of skill was
identical for both the total sample and the sample of post offices only
(tables 2 and 3). About 60 percent of the total hours were worked by skilled
trades, 34 percent by semiskilled and unskilled workers, and 6 percent by
nonmanual personnel (supervisors, professional, technical and clerical
employees).
Within the skilled trades, workers in the four predominant building
crafts— carpenters, plumbers, electricians, and bricklayers— accounted for
60 percent of skilled man-hours in both samples. There was, however, a con
siderable variation in the proportion of hours worked by each of these crafts,

7/ Labor Requirements for School Construction. BLS Bulletin No. 1299
(1961), p. 9.

Table 2.

On-Site Man-Hour Requirements per $1,000 of Federal Office Building Construction Contract, by Occupation
and Region, 1959
West

United States
Occupation

Northeast

North Central

South

Man-hours
Percent
worked

fen-hours Percent
worked

Man-hours Percent
worked

All occupations .........

97.1

100.0

110.4

100.0

100.2

100.0

96.0

100.0

89.2

100.0

Supervisors .............
Professional, technical,
and clerical ...........

3.6

3.7

3.3

4.5

3.1

3.3

4.9

5.5

2.2

2.3

1.4

1.3

1.7

1.6

2.3

2.4

3.4

3.8

12.2
8.8
8.5
5.0
4.9
2.3
2.1
2.1
2.0
2.0
2.0
1.8
1.2
.8
.7
.7

12.6
9.1
8.7
5.2
5.0
2.4
2.2
2.1
2.1
2.1
2.0
1.8
1.2
.8
.8
.7

19.7
9.7
10.8
5.7
4.5
1.6
•4
1.3
2.3
3.9
3.6
3.8
2.2
1.2
.9
.5

17.8
8.8
9.8
5.1
4.1
1.4
.3
1.2
2.0
3.5
3.2
3.5
2.0
1.1
.8
•4

13.9
7.5
8.8
5.6
6.1
1.8
2.9
2.1
1.8
1.8
2.1
2.5
.6
1.0
.7
.6

13.9
7.5
8.7
5.6
6.1
1.8
2.9
2.1
1.8
1.8
2.1
2.4
.6
1.0
.7
.6

11.3
9.3
8.5
5.0
4.3
2.6
1.8
2.2
2.0
1.9
1.7
1.3
1.3
.8
.7
.8

11.8
9.7
8.8
5.2
4.4
2.7
1.9
2.3
2.1
2.0
1.8
1.3
1.4
.8
.7
.8

10.3
7.6
6.0
3.0
7.0
1.8
3.7
1.2
2.6
2.7
3.6
2.9
.9
.1
1.3
.3

11.6
8.5
6.7
3.3
7.9
2.0
4.2
1.4
2.9
3.1
4.0
3.3
1.0
.1
1.5
.4

.5
.4
.2

.5
•4
.2

.4
.9
.4

.4
.8
.4

.7
.6
.3

.4
.3
.1

.3
.5
.9

.4
.5
1.0

25.3
6.2
.9
.2

26.1
6.4
.9
.2

28.6
2.7
•4
0

25.9
2.4
.3
0

24.3
7.4
.5
.2

24.2
7.4
.5
.2

26.4
6.0
1.0
.3

27.5
6.2
1.1
.3

15.5
7.0
1.4
0

17.3
7.8
1.6
0

•4

Construction trades:
Carpenters ............
Electricians ..........
Plumbers ...............
Bricklayers ...........
Sheet-metal workers ••••
Operating engineers ....
Reinforcing-iron workers
Asbestos workers ......
Cement finishers ......
Painters ............ ..
Plasterers .............
L a t h e r s ............ .
Structural-iron workers.
Ornamental-iron workers.
Elevator mechanics ....
Roofers .............. .
Tile setters and
terrazzo workers ....
Glaziers ....... .
Soft-floor layers .....
Laborers ..............
Helpers and tenders ....
Truckdrivers ..........
Watchmen ..............
Other .................

Note: Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals.

Table 3.

On-Site Man-Hour Requirements per $1,000 of Post Office Building 1/ Construction Contract, by Occupation
and Region, 1959
United States
Occupation

Man-hours
worked

Northeast

Percent

Man-hours
worked

North Central

Percent

Man-hours
worked

South

Percent

Man-hours
worked

Percent

All occupations ........................

106.5

100.0

110.4

100.0

100.2

100.0

115.7

100.0

Supervisors ............................
Professional, technical, and clerical ...

4.8
1.4

4.5
1.3

3.7
1.4

3.3
1.3

4.6
1.7

5.4
.9

4.7
.8

Construction trades:
Carpenters..... ............... .
Electricians .........................
Plumbers .............................
Bricklayers ............. ............
Sheet-metal workers ..................
Operating engineers ..................
Reinforcing-iron w o r k e r s .... ........
Asbestos w o r k e r s ..... ....... .
Cement finishers .....................
Painters .............................
Plasterers ...........................
Lathers ......... ....................
Structural-iron workers ..............
Ornamental-iron workers ..............
Elevator mechanics ........ .
Roofers ........................ .....
Tile setters and terrazzo workers ....
Glaziers .................. ..........
Soft floor layers •••.......... .

15.2
7.5
8.7
6.4
5.0
2.0
2.4
2.0
1.9
2.5
2.9
2.4
1.2
.7
.6
.7
.6
.7
.3

14.3
7.1
8.2
6.0
4.7
1.8
2.2
1.8
1.8
2.4
2.7
2.2
1.1
.6
.6
.6
.6
.6
.3

19.7
9.7
10.8
5.7
4.5
1.6
.4
1.3
2.3
3.9
3.6
3.8
2.2
1.2
.9
.5
.4
.9
.4

17.8
8.8
9.8
5.1
4.1
1.4
.3
1.2
2.0
3.5
3.2
3.5
2.0
1.1
.8
.4
.4
.8
•4

13.6
7.5
8.7
5.6
6.2
1.9
3.0
2.1
1.8
1.8
2.2
2.5
.6
1.0
.7
.6
.7
.6
.3

16.6
6.9
8.1
7.9
3.0
2.3
1.9
1.9
2.0
3.3
4.0
1.8
2.0
0
.3
.9
.6
.7
.2

14.3
6.0
7.0
6.8
2.6
2.0
1.6
1.6
1.8
2.9
3.5
1.5
1.7
0
.2
.8
.5
.6
.1

Laborers .............................
Helpers and t e n d e r s ..... ............
Truckdrivers ........................ .
Watchmen .............................

28.4
7.4
.5
.1

26.7
7.0
.5
.1

28.6
2.7
.4
0

25.9
2.4
.3
0

23.8
7.6
.5
.2

23.7
7.6
.5
.2

36.1
8.4
.5
0

31.2
7.3
.4
0

O t h e r ........ .......................

1/ With space for other Federal activities.
the survey.
Note:

No building of this type was constructed in the West during the period of

Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals.

as well as the others, from job to job. Thus, the percentage of total
project man-hours worked by carpenters ranged from 7 to 23, by electricians
from 2 to 12, and by plumbers from 4 to 14.
These variations probably reflect primarily the design requirements of
individual projects, and, to a lesser extent, divisions of work arising in
part from local union jurisdictions. Thus, the percentage of man-hours for
electricians was highest on the OASI building, with its exceptional electronic
data-processing facilities, and for plumbers was highest (with a minor
exception) for the CDC project with its laboratory installations.
In post office construction, special requirements are minimized. This
is reflected in the occupational distribution. Thus, for each of the
mechanical and allied trades (plumbers, electricians, sheet-metal workers,
asbestos workers, elevator mechanics), man-hour proportions are less for
post office buildings, whereas for each of the finishing trades (painters,
plasterers, lathers, tile setters and terrazzo workers, glaziers, soft floor
layers) they are greater. Further, in the post office sample, plumbers
account for relatively more hours than do electricians. This is the more
common relationship, and the reverse of that in the overall sample.
Variations from region to region in the ratios of man-hours worked by
different trades on the sample of all projects reflect chiefly the chance
distribution of the different types of buildings among the regions. The
variations for post offices only are probably more significant as far as
inherent regional factors such as climatic design requirements and work
practices are concerned. In the latter connection, a number of factors
affect the regional distribution by occupation, apart from the construction
operations required by the specifications of the buildings. The relative
strength of local unions, for example, affects the organization of work crews
and the classification of jobs. Local custom influences the opportunity of
union membership and of journeyman jobs for minority groups, and this
influence is differently felt in different crafts. 8/ Finally, the local
availability of lower paid labor may affect the extent of mechanization.
These factors particularly influence the division between skilled and
unskilled workers. Thus, for post office construction, unskilled and semi
skilled workers accounted for 39 percent of total man-hours in the South
compared with 32 percent in the North Central region; the percentages for
skilled workers were 56 and 61, respectively.

8/ Employment Outlook in the Building Trades. BLS Bulletin No. 967
(1949), p. 26.

Table 4. Apprentice Man-Hours as a Percent of Total Man-Hours Worked on
Federal Office Building Construction, by Occupation and Region, 1959

United
States

North
east

North
Central

South

West

All workers ................... .

3.9

7.2

3.4

3.9

4.6

Construction trades only .......

6.5

10.8

5.5

6.6

7.3

Carpenters .......... ..........
Electricians ...................
Plumbers .......................
Bricklayers ..................
Sheet-metal workers ............
Operating engineers..... .......
Reinforcing-iron workers .......
Asbestos workers ...............
Cement finishers ...............
Painters .......................
Plasterers .....................
Lathers ........................
Structural-iron workers ........
Ornamental-iron workers ........
Elevator mechanics .............
Roofers ........................
Tile setters and terrazzo
workers ......................
Glaziers ...................
Soft floor l a y e r s .......... .

6.3
12.0
9.8
3.2
10.7
0
4.0
0
2.3
1.2
2.4
8.7
.7
2.5
0
4.5

6.7
19.4
29.6
2.2
20.5
0
0
0
0
1.2
.8
7.4
6.4
0
0
0

3.6
5.9
5.9
5.4
15.6
0
4.5
0
3.6
•4
.7
9.7
1.2
1.8
0
19.0

7.3
13.5
9.0
2.4
7.3
0
4.5
0
2.2
.7
3.5
9.6
.1
3.0
0
.9

6.6
9.0
21.0
.9
12.9
0
0
0
.5
7.4
1.5
2.6
0
0
0
3.0

4.3
1.3

0
0
1.4

3.5
0
10.6

4*4
1.4
22.1

10.8
9.5
19.0

Occupation

16 .0

The persistence in all regions of a relatively large proportion of man
hours representing employment of lesser skilled workers is noteworthy. About
a third of all on-site employment represented unskilled and semiskilled labor,
despite considerable mechanization in materials handling, excavating, cleaning
and similar jobs formerly performed almost exclusively by laborers. This
suggests that the nature of construction operations may limit the degree of
mechanization that can be used profitably.
Apprentices. ' Apprentices accounted for 3.9 percent of all man-hours
worked at the site of the sample projects, or 6.5 percent of skilled trade
man-hours (table 4-). These data reflect only the work of participants in
formal, registered apprenticeship programs, since only these may be classi
fied as apprenctices on the payrolls used as the source of on-site labor
requirements information. For the three trades— asbestos workers, elevator
mechanics, operating engineers— which reported no apprentices, formal programs
either did not exist or were only just evolving. In these trades, training
is usually acquired on an informal basis by assisting a journeyman in his
work over a period of years. Workers in this status, whether called
"improvers" in the case of asbestos work, "helpers" in elevator work, or
"oilers" in equipment operation, are grouped with Helpers and tenders in other
tables of this report. High rates of apprentice employment are associated
with shortages of skilled journeymen in the craft, or with some smaller crafts
General and Special Trades Contractors1 Shares
Employees of general contractors accounted for 4 0 percent of the total
.
man-hours required for the construction of all the sample projects, although
for seven projects this percentage exceeded 60. (See table 5.) Variations
in the proportion of work done by general contractors reflect local con
struction practices, as well as special requirements of the projects. Illus
trating the former, although masonry was usually subcontracted, there were
nine projects involving substantial amounts of brickwork where the brick
layers were employees of the general contractor. These tended to be the
smaller projects. The effect of special project requirements is noted in the
comparison of all projects with the post office sample only. One effect of
excluding data on the special types of projects is to reduce the proportion
of work done by special trades contractors and thus increase the general
contractor's proportion. This is due primarily to a reduction in the
Plumbing, heating, and air conditioning and Electrical categories, for which
OASI and Communicable Disease facilities had heavy requirements.

17
Table 5.

Percent of Total On-Site Man-Hour Requirements for Federal Office Building
Construction, by Type of Contractor and Region, 1959

Type of contractor

United
States

North
east

North
Central

South

West

All projects
All types ............................

100.0

General................ ..............

39.6

51.6

43.3

37.9

34.6

20.1
9.8
7.9
4. 8
3.5
2.1

16.0
10.0
0
8.9
3.2
3.5

19.7
7.7
6.7
6.3
2.7
1.9

20.8
10.5
8.9
3.6
3.6
2.0

17.6
10.1
8.2
9.5
5.5
3.2

2.1

2.5

2.0

2.5

1.5
1.4
1.2
5.9

1.7
.9
1.5
1.9

1.4
1.5
1.4
5.0

1.5
1.4
1.2
6.6

2.3
.9
.6
5.1

Special trades:
Plumbing, heating, and air conditioning
Electrical .........................
Masonry........... •...............
Plastering and lathing ............ ..
Structural and ornamental metalwork ...
Painting ...........................
Site preparation, excavation, and
foundations ......................
Elevator and other equipment
installation........... ....... . ••
Tile and terrazzo w o r k ..............
Roofing and sheet-metal work ........
O ther..............................

Post office buildings l/
All types ............................

100.0

—

General ....... ..... ................

46.1

51.6

42.9

49.2

—

17.0

16 .0

19.5
7.7

7.5
2.0
2.4

10.0
0
8.9
3.2
3.5

6.9
6.5
2.8
1.9

13.8
6.0
10.5
8.5
.7
2.9

—

7.3
7.5

2.0

2.6

1.6

—

1.1
1.5
1.5
4.1

1.7
.9
1.5
1.9

1.4
1.5
1.3
5.0

.4
1.5
1.8

—
—
—

Special trades:
Plumbing, heating, and air conditioning
Electrical .........................
Masonry ............................
Plastering and lathing ..............
Structural and ornamental metalwork ..•
Painting ............................
Site preparation, excavation, and
foundations...... . ••.......... .. •
Elevator and other equipment
installation ......................
Tile and terrazzo work ...............
Roofing and sheet-metal w o r k .......
Other ..............................

3.3

1/ With space for other Federal activities.
Note:

Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal 100.0

—

—
—
—
—

The average number of prime and subcontractors on each sample project
was 22. This number varied considerably, however, with size of project (in
cost terms), the larger projects showing a higher degree of specialization:
Cost group
(thousands)

Average number
of contractors

All groups .....

$500 and under ..
$501 - $1,000 ...
$1,001 - $2,500 .
$2,501 - $5,000 .
$5,001 - $10,000
$10,001 and over

18
20

26
28
37

The Cost of Direct Wages
Wage payments to on-site labor represented 29 percent of the total value
of the construction contracts for all sample projects, and 31 percent for
post office buildings only (table l). These percentages reflect the combined
effect of man-hour requirements and wage rates. The effect of increased
average hourly earnings in raising the percentage is partially offset by the
tendency of higher hourly earnings to be associated with lower man-hour
requirements. Nevertheless, the range in this ratio was rather wide— from
to 39 percent.
Average hourly
earnings
All projects .......
Under
$2.25
$2.50
$2.75
$3.00
$3.25

$2.25 ..........
— $2.49 .........
- $2.74 ........
- $2.99 ........
- $3.24 ........
and over .......
l/

Number of
projects

Man-hours
per $1,000

22
3
0
4
5
6
4

Percent wages
of cost

22
1/

134

1/ 26

—

1/ 109
1/ 107
V 103
1/ 100

—

1/ 29
1/31
1/ 32
1/ 34

Average of individual project measures.

Overtime work (i.e., those hours paid for at premium rates) was not a
significant factor in raising the wage portion of total cost. These hours
averaged 2.1 percent of total man-hours worked on all projects and on post
office buildings only. (See table 6.) The rate of overtime work varied
widely among the various trades. Thus, cement finishers accounted for 11
percent of all overtime hours compared with only 2 percent of total man-hours

Table 6.

Overtime 1/ Man-Hours as a Percent of All Man-Hours Worked in Federal Office Building Construction, by Tenths of
Total Construction Time and by Occupation, 1959
All
periods

1st
tenth

2d
tenth

3d
tenth

4th
tenth

5th
tenth

6th
tenth

7th
tenth

8th
tenth

9th
tenth

Last
tenth

All occupations ...........

2.1

2.7

2.6

2.7

2.5

2.4

1.7

1.3

1.7

2.1

2.2

Supervisors ..............

0.4

0.2

0.3

0.1

0.3

0.8

1.3

0.3

Professional, technical,
and clerical........ .

1.9

1.5

2.1

2.0

1.7

2.5

3.4

2.9

2.7

1.0
.9
.5
.1
.6
6.5
1.5
1.1
11.2
1.2
.3
.2
1.1
.1
2.8
2.7

1.3
.7
.3
0
0
9.0
•4
0
3.0
1-5
0
0
1.8
0
0
0

1.9
1.8
.1
.4
0
4.9
1.5
0
12.8
0
0
0
.9
0
0
3.3

1.2
2.4
.1
.2
0
6.4
1.9
0
13.6
0
0
1.2
2.2
0
0
4.3

.6
•4
.i
.i
.2
7.9
1.6
0
14.8
5.1
0
0
.4
0
.7
2.4

.9
.3
(2/)
.1
.7
6.5
1.7
.9
19.5
0
1.1
0
.5
0
.5
2.9

.8
.3
.1
(2/)
1.1
5.4
.9
.5
15.7
0
0
0
.5
.2
.6
1.8

.5
.5
.4
.1
.2
3.4
.2
.1
8.1
.1
.1
(2/)
.8
.1
1.2
3.6

.7
•9
1.2
.1
.4
6.7
0
.5
2.9
1.5
.5
.6
2.5
.1
1.4
2.2

.8
1.6
1.8
.1
1.0
10.3
6.1
.8
3.3
.8
.2
.2
3.5
0
9.9
.7

1.7
1.7
.9
•4
(2/)
4.7
2.7
9.6
2.5
1.9
0
0
3.0
0
2.1
.3

1.3
6.7
3.2

0
0
0

1.9
5.0
0

1.0
8.9
0

1.0
6.1
.5

1.2
6.1
4.1

3.4
8.1
4.6

Laborers ...............
Helpers and tenders ....
Truckdrivers ...........
W atchmen.............. .

3.2
3.4
5.2
3.6

2.2
9.0
4.8
.1

3.3
3.8
2.9
.4

3.9
3.2
6.7
.1

3.9
4.8
9.8
.4

4.2
3.8
6.9
2.0

3.1
3.2
3.0
2.9

2.1
2.4
4.1
.7

2.4
3.8
3.8
2.2

2.6
3.2
4.7
16.6

2.5
4.1
4.8
41.4

Other ..................

5.9

3.9

4.2

1.8

8.7

8.8

9.6

9.1

5.4

5.1

Occupation

Construction trades:
Carpenters .............
Electricians ...........
Plumbers ...............
Bricklayers ............
Sheet-metal workers ....
Operating engineers ....
Reinforcing-iron workers.
Asbestos workers ...... .
Cement finishers .......
Painters ............. ..
Plasterers .............
Lathers ............. .
Structural-iron workers .
Ornamental-iron workers .
Elevator mechanics .....
Roofers ............... .
Tile setters and
terrazzo workers .....
Glaziers ...............
Soft floor layers ......

Hours for which premium rates were paid.
Less than 0.05 percent.

worked. During the peak period of cement finishing activity, nearly onefifth of all hours worked by this craft were at overtime rates, reflecting
a basic requirement that such work must be completed while the concrete is
still at a proper degree of plasticity. On the other hand, the number of
overtime hours worked by bricklayers was almost negligible.
Occupational shares
Distribution of the on-site earnings among the various occupations is
shown in table 7. These shares reflect the volume of work by each occupation
as well as the wage rates. Thus, despite a relatively low hourly rate,
common labor accounted for a greater part of the construction dollar, over
5 cents, than any other class of worker. The three leading groups of crafts
men— carpenters, electricians, and plumbers— together received about the same
portion of the total wage bill as all other skilled trades combined. Many of
the minor trades are not always separately distinguished, particularly in
nonmetropolitan areas, where their work is performed by more widely recog
nized trades. For example, ceiling and floor tiles may be installed by
special tradesmen in some areas, but in others are frequently installed by
carpenters.
The division of projects between metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas
probably influences the variations noted in average hourly earnings (tables 1
and 7) more than does any other single factor. Usually, wage rates tend to
be higher in metropolitan areas than in less densely populated areas in the
same region. This accounts for the relatively high average hourly earnings
for most crafts in the South, where the greater part of the sample was con
centrated in large metropolitan areas. It also accounts for the fact that the
multistory buildings and the costlier projects are associated with higher
average hourly earnings, since these projects are usually in the larger urban
centers.

21
Table 7.

Average Hourly Earnings and Distribution of On-Site Earnings on Federal
Office Building Construction, by Occupation and Region 1/, 1959

Occupation

United States
Percent Average
of total hourly
on-site earnings
earnings

North Central
Percent I
Average
of total hourly
on-site earnings
earnings

South
Percent Average
of total hourly
on-site earnings
earnings

100.0

$2.98

100.0

$3.15

100.0

$2.90

Supervisors ...............

5.2

$4.22

6.2

$4.32

4.7

$4.13

Professional, technical,
and clerical ...........

2.0

2.67

1.3

2.54

2.2

2.69

13.0
10.7
10.3
6.7
5.5
2.7
2.6
2.7
2.4
2.1
2.4
2.1
1.5
1.1
1.0
.7

3.09
3.52
3.52
3.82
3.29
3.37
3.47
3.76
3.52
2.98
3.50
3.48
3.72
3.86
3.93
2.80

14.1
8.8
9.9
6.8
6.1
2.0
3.3
2.5
2.0
1.8
2.5
2.9
.7
1.1
.8
.5

3.19
3.68
3.56
3.81
3.12
3.49
3.53
3.77
3.52
3.07
3.81
3.67
3.69
3.64
3.73
2.58

12.4
11.7
10.8
6.8
5.1
3.1
2.3
2.9
2.6
2.1
2.0
1.5
1.8
1.1
1.0
.8

3.04
3.51
3.53
3.81
3.36
3.34
3.46
3.78
3.51
3.05
3.30
3.33
3.67
4.00
4.00
2.83

.6
•4
.3

3.48
3.12
3.17

.8
.7
•4

3.52
3.41
3.40

.5
.3
.1

3.46
3.15
3.06

Laborers ...............
Helpers and tenders .....
Truckdrivers ...........
Watchmen .••••.........

17.6
5.1
.7
.1

2.01
2.39
2.18
1.27

18.2
6.1
.4
.1

2.37
2.59
2.44
1.80

17.7
4.9
.8
.1

1.87
2.28
2.12
1.12

Other ..................

3.44

3.17

3.48

All occupations ... ..... .

Construction trades:
Carpenters ........... .
Electricians ...........
Plumbers ...............
Bricklayers ............
Sheet-metal workers .....
Operating engineers .....
Reinforcing-iron workers .
Asbestos workers •••••••••
Cement finishers .......
Painters ••••............
Plasterers .............
Lathers................
Structural-iron workers ..
Ornamental-iron workers ..
Elevator mechanics ......
Roofers ....... ........
Tile setters and terrazzo
workers......... .
Glaziers ...............
Soft floor layers .......

Insufficient data to justify presentation for the Northeast and West

Note:

Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal 100.0

Off-Site Employment

For each man-hour of employment performed on the construction site, an
additional 1.3 man-hours were required to produce and distribute the necessary
construction materials, supplies, and equipment used in the construction of
Federal buildings. Thus, these projects gave rise to 130 man-hours of such
employment per $1,000 of contract, compared with the 97 hours on-3 ite.
Off-site employment is generated in many places, but can be classified
in the following categories;
1. Construction industry— off-site:
warehousing functions.

administrative, estimating, and

2. Manufacturing activities producing fabricated and raw materials, and
equipment.
3. Transportation, warehousing, and distribution of fabricated and raw
materials and equipment.
U. All other industries which are directly or indirectly affected by the
production of fabricated and raw materials, including agriculture, forestry,
and mining.
There axe, of course, other groups affected which this study did not
attempt to cover. Some of these are mentioned on page 2 of the introductory
section. Of those omitted, the most numerically important groups directly
affected by a Federal building construction program were employees of archi
tectural firms (p. 25), utility companies, and the Federal Government. A
large area of employment also excluded from the calculations of man-hour
effects, as mentioned earlier, is that created by the respending and investing
of wages and profits arising in various areas of economic activity within the
scope of this study.
Although the ratio of on-site to off-site employment requirements is
commonly used in analyzing employment requirements in the construction indus
try, another type of distinction based upon the economic relations of the
labor-generating areas is also useful. Therefore, in this study, employment
requirements have also been divided into primary and secondary man-hour needs.
As shown in the following tabulation and chart 1, primary man-hour require
ments, estimated at 169, arise in activities at the site and those rigidly
related to the volume of construction activity. Included in these require
ments, in addition to site employment, are off-site construction employment,
employment by manufacturing industries represented at the "last stage of
manufacturing" for materials prior to shipment to the site, as well as
employment in transportation, trade, and service organizations dealing in
materials used at the site.

Secondary man-hour requirements have been defined as including those
associated with all other requirements indirectly related to the needs at the
site. Such employment, totaling 58 hours or 26 percent of total man-hour
requirements, spreads to all parts of the economy as the impact of primary
activity is reflected in demand for basic materials and related transportation,
trade, and service. 2/ The following tabulation shows man-hours of employ
ment associated with $1,000 of Federal building construction:
Total
Total ..............
On-site:
Construction .......
Off-site .............
Construction .......
Manufacturing ......
Transportation .....
Trade and service ...
Other ..............

Primary
activities

227

169

97
130
10
79
9
20

97
72
10
45
5
12
— —

Secondary
activities
18

—

58
—

34
4
8
12

Some industries are represented in both the primary and secondary sectors
since their products or services are used in site activity and by manufactur
ers producing items for site activity. For example, the sand and gravel
industry furnishes materials directly to the construction industry and also
to the ready-mixed concrete industry which in turn sells to the construction
industry.
Builders' Off-Site Employment
An exact study of contractors' off-site employment was not attempted,
since it was almost impossible to relate accurately such employment with the
projects being studied. Builders' off-site employment was not only concerned
with the project studied, but with work involving other current or future
projects as well.

2/ Secondary man-hours were estimated on the basis of a study made by
the Bureau of 194-7 interindustry relationships. See article by W. Duane Evans
and Marvin Hoffenberg, "The Interindustry Relations Study for 1947," Review
of Economics and Statistics. Cambridge, Mass., Vol. 34, May 1952, pp. 97-142.
For methods employed, see appendix A to this bulletin.

The estimate of 10 off-site man-hours for each $1,000 of contract is
based on the difference between construction worker employment and total
employment in the contract construction industry. 10/ This estimate includes
some self-employed craftsmen who may have worked at the site.
Combining this employment with on-site employment results in an estimate
of 107 hours of employment in the construction industry for each $1,000 of
Federal building construction.
Employment in Transportation. Trade, and Service
Distribution of construction materials from the producing industries
requires employment of workers in the transportation, warehousing, and trade
industries. The estimate of 17 11/ hours of primary employment per $1,000 of
contract is based on the difference between producer's value and delivered
value of materials used at the site. This estimate covers only the distri
bution of materials from producers to construction site and does not include
distribution, etc. of materials among industries prior to shipment of the
completed products.
"Last Manufacturing Stage" Employment
The sector of the economy most affected by building construction, other
than the construction industry itself, is manufacturing. An estimated J+5 man
hours were required for each $1,000 of total contract for production of
construction materials used in the buildings. This estimate, however,
includes only employment required in the last manufacturing process of the
materials. 12/ Employment generated by this activity is distributed in many
industries which are directly affected by activity in the construction indus
try. For example, it includes employment in sawmills cutting rough lumber
for forms, and establishments making millwork items from lumber, but does not
include employment in sawmills producing lumber for millwork products. The
latter is included in the estimate of secondary employment discussed below.
Employment in Secondary Activities
In addition to the A5 man-hours of primary employment required for each
$1,000 of construction contract in factories making construction materials, an
additional 3/ man-hours were required in secondary manufacturing activities.
10/ Administrative, engineering, estimating, and clerical workers
accounted for about 14- percent of total employment in the construction indus
try. About one-fourth of this employment was involved at the site.
11/ Not comparable with the corresponding figure of 13 previously
published for schools. The latter figure would have been 18 under an improved
method of estimation.
12/ Included in the bill of materials were the supplies and the expended
value of the equipment used by construction contractors.

Transportation industries required U hours of employment to transport
materials to and from the industries indirectly affected.
Trade and service industries as a group required 8 hours of employment
for each $1,000 of Federal building construction to meet the needs of
secondary business activity.
Other business activities, primarily agriculture, forestry, and mining,
accounted for the remaining 12 of the 58 hours of secondary manpower
requirements.
Supplementary Employment
The figures hitherto presented relate only to employment generated by
expenditures under the construction contract. However, as previously noted,
employment is affected by other expenditures directly related to specific
construction projects. Chief among these is employment in engineering and
architectural fields for design and specification preparation and in related
activities, such as preliminary surveying and testing and inspection by the
architect or sponsor during construction.
For Federal buildings, these activities required an additional expendi
ture amounting to nearly $7.50 for every $100 of construction cost— $5 for
the preparation of designs and specifications, and $2.50 for other activities.
These expenditures were estimated to provide about 15 man-hours of employment
per $1,000 of construction contract, in addition to the 227 man-hours
generated by the construction cost alone.

Chart 3.

On-Site Man-Hours of Construction Labor for Each ^1,000

Chart 3. On-Site Man-Hours of Construction Labor for Each $1,000
of Federal Building Construction Contract, 1959, by( Decile of Construction Time
Man-Hours

Deciles of Construction Time

Construction Time

Average construction time for the projects surveyed was about a year and
a half. Construction time varied on individual projects, however, from 38
weeks on the smallest project to 135 weeks on one of the largest. This
increase in construction time with increase in project cost is further
illustrated in the following tabulation:
Cost group
(thousands)

Average number of weeks
required for construction

All groups ........

$500 and under ......
$501 - $1,000 .......
$1,001 - $2,500 .....
$2,501 - $5,000 .....
$5,001 - $10,000 ....
$10,001 and over ....

54
90
98
133

Occupational Employment by Construction Periods
In order to measure the distribution of employment, the construction
time for each project was divided into 10 equal periods, and data on the
number of man-hours worked were tabulated for each of these periods. This
permitted the combination of man-hours for projects of various sizes in order
to obtain typical employment patterns as shown in table 8 and chart 3 for all
buildings studied. These data as well as those for post offices only show
man-hour employment rising from less than 3 percent of total in the first
period to more than 14 percent in the peak sixth period, dropping gradually
in the next three periods, and dropping sharply in the last period.
The sequence of work by the structural, mechanical, and finishing trades
is apparent. Also apparent is a tendency for the work of the smaller, more
specialized crafts to be concentrated into smaller periods of time.
Contractor Employment by Construction Period
Man-hour data were also tabulated by tenths of total construction period
for each of the major types of contractor (table 9). The data thus distri
buted may be readily reconciled with the occupational distributions just
discussed. It is interesting to note the similarity of the distribution of
the general contractor and carpenter man-hours. In each, 63 percent of total
man-hours were applied in the first half of the construction period. Once the
forms for the concrete frames of the buildings had been substantially completed,
general contractor and carpenter man-hour employment dropped to a lower but
relatively stable level for the remainder of the period.

Table 8.

Percent of On-Site Employment for Federal Office Building Construction in Each Tenth of Total Construction Time
by Occupation, 1959

1st
tenth

2d
tenth

3d
tenth

4th
tenth

5th
tenth

6th
tenth

7th
tenth

8th
tenth

9th
tenth

Last
tenth

All occupations ........... .

2.7

6.4

9.7

11.8

13.0

14.4

13.3

13.8

10.5

4.3

Supervisors ................

5.3

8.5

9.8

11.7

13.3

12.9

11.6

10.9

9.4

6.6

Professional, technical,
and clerical .............

6.2

10.2

12.1

13.7

13.4

13.0

10.7

8.4

7.2

5.1

4.1
.4
.7
(1/)
.1
13.4
5.2
0
.8
.4
0
0
2.2
.1
0
.1

11.4
2.0
3.4
1.2
1.2
15.0
17.8
0
3.8
.1
0
(1/)
5.2
.2
(!/)
1.7

18.6
5.6
7.7
3.2
2.9
11.1
22.1
.2
8.8
.3
0
.5
14.8
0
.1
9.0

16.8
9.4
11.6
10.9
8.3
10.4
22.6
4.0
15.8
2.0
.2
1.8
15.0
3.2
3.4
11.8

12.2
12.3
15.4
20.9
15.9
9.8
17.0
13.9
16.5
.9
1.6
5.3
18.4
7.0
8.9
13.9

8.4
14.0
16.1
32.9
17.5
10.8
8.7
19.1
13.7
.8
10.3
21.6
17.1
27.1
15.8
22.6

6.8
14-1
13.8
18.3
19.2
10.2
4.0
18.5
11.4
4.8
34.1
33.1
14.8
21.7
22.1
27.3

8.3
17.9
14.6
10.2
17.4
11.1
1.7
23.0
14.0
21.0
39.8
28.0
7.8
22.7
24.9
11.1

9.2
17.6
11.5
1.8
12.6
6.8
.6
14.8
11.8
47.9
12.2
8.9
3.0
14.9
19.4
1.9

4.2
6.6
5.2
.5
4.8
1.4
.2
6.4
3.4
21.8
1.7
.8
1.7
3.2
5.3
.6

0
0
0

.2
0
0

.4
0
0

3.0
10.6
0

11.4
19.2
.4

36.8
24.3
28.3

40.0
38.0
47.4

8.2
7.9
23.8

4.1
.9
11.5
7.0

10.0
2.2
9.3
9.7

14.4
2.0
11.8
10.5

15.2
6.4
10.8
13.3

13.3
13.9
10.0
13.0

12.4
21.7
8.8
13.4

10.3
19.7
8.3
10.5

10.1
19.9
12.5
9.7

6.7
10.8
10.9
11.1

3.5
2.5
6.0
1.8

8.6

11.9

5.2

7.8

9.4

13.4

20.8

11.3

6.3

Occupation

Construction trades:
Carpenters ...............
Electricians .............
Plumbers .................
Bricklayers ..............
Sheet-metal workers ......
Operating engineers .......
Reinforcing-iron workers ..
Asbestos workers .........
Cement finishers .........
Painters .................
Plasterers ............. ..
Lathers ..................
Structural-iron workers ...
Ornamental-iron workers ...
Elevator mechanics .......
Roofers ................ .
Tile setters and terrazzo
workers ................
Glaziers .................
Soft floor layers ........
Laborers .................
Helpers and tenders ......
Truckdrivers .............
Watchmen....... ••••••••••
Other ....................

Less than 0.05 percent

Table 9.

Percent of On-Site Employment for Federal Office Building Construction in Each Tenth of Total Construction Time
by Type of Contractor, 1959

Type of contractor

1st
tenth

2d
tenth

3d
tenth

4th
tenth

5th
tenth

6th
tenth

7th
tenth

8th
tenth

9th
tenth

Last
tenth

9,7

11.8

13.0

14.4

13 .3

13.8

10.5

4 .3

All types ...........................

2.7

General ................ . ••.........

4 .3

10.9

16 .5

16.5

14 .5

12.1

8.3

7.6

6 .2

3 .1

.7
.5

2 .7
2 .5

0
0

*4
(1 /)

5 .5
5 .9
1 .1
.1

9.4
9.5
7.4
.9

14 .2
12 .2
19 .5
3 .6

15.7
14.0
34.7
17.1

16.3
14.0
22.3
34.2

16.8
17.5
12.6
36.1

13.3
17.1
1.5
6.8

5 .3
6 .7
.5
1 .3

3.4
.1

(1 /)

1 6 .1
.3

15.3
1.9

13 .5
.9

14.5
.7

11.8
4.7

9.1
21.7

5.5
48.1

1 .2
2 1.4

31.6

3 2 .4

13.1

12.0

3 .7

1.0

1.4

2.5

1.5

0
0

.5
0
1.8
3 .3

3.1
.2
7.5
13.8

8 .3
.3
1 2 .9

16.1
2.7

n.6

6.5

22.7
11.1
26.6
9.1

25.0
38.0
13.9
17.8

19.6
38.8
4.9
19.4

4.7
9.0
1.2
9.3

Special trades:
Plumbing, heating, and air
conditioning ....................
Electrical....... ................
M a s o n r y ........ . •••..............
Plastering and lathing ............
Structural and ornamental metal
w o r k ............................
Painting ......................... .
Site preparation, excavation, and
foundations .................. .
Elevator and other equipment
installation .............. .....
Tile and terrazzo work ............
Roofing and sheet-metal work ......
Other .............................

Less than 0.05 percent.

.1
1.4

6 .4.

9 .6

0
6.9
7.9

2 4 .2

Materials Used

Costs of materials represented 53.3 percent of total construction con
tract value of all projects. This average is affected by the value for the
OASI building, which, at 56.4-, was among the three highest for individual
projects. (It may be recalled that wages as a percentage of cost was lower
on this than on any other project.) The average value for post offices only
was 50.6, and the median value for all projects and for post offices only was
50.1. Most projects were in a range of 5 percent from the latter figure:
Percent materials cost
of total cost
41-45
46 - 50
51-55
56 - 60
61-65

....................
....................
....................
....................
....................

Number of
projects
4
7
7
3
1

The difference between the total construction contract cost and the sum
of materials and wage costs amounted to 18 percent of the cost of all projects
and of post offices only. This represented the total of those overhead costs
which cannot be attributed to specific projects (expenses of central office
and yard operation, insurance, taxes, etc.) and profit. These two components
(overhead costs and profit) could not be separated in this survey.
Table 10 presents the costs of major materials and groups of materials
used in each $1,000 of construction of post offices and of all Federal
buildings. The groups, and items within the groups, are ranked by their
relative importance. The table is perhaps more meaningful if values are
reduced to the familiar magnitudes of percentages by shifting the decimal
point one place to the left. Thus, the totals for "All products" become 53.3
percent for all buildings and 50.6 for post offices only. These totals
include depreciation charges or rental costs for construction equipment used,
and costs of the small amounts of supplies consumed. All other items in the
table represent materials or fixed equipment incorporated in the structures.
It will be noted that almost all individual materials items show greater
percentages for post offices than for all projects, while the reverse is true
for equipment items. This reflects the specialized needs of several buildings
in the non-post-office portion of the sample. For example, electrical equip
ment and accessory items constituted 9.7 percent of the total construction
cost of all buildings surveyed, but only 5.2 percent of the cost of the post

Table 10.

Total Cost of Material Components for Each $1,000 of Federal
Building Construction Contract, 1959

All
buildings

Post office
buildings l/

All products .....................................

$532.50

$506.10

Metal products (except plumbing and heating) .....

133.30

154.60

Fabricated structural metal products ..........
Reinforcing bars and joists ................. .
Fabricated sheet-metal products ...... .......
Structural steel .............................
Metal windows .................... ...........
Metal doors and f r a m e s ......... ....... .....
Ornamental m e t a l ........ ....................
Wire m e s h .................... .............. .

102.50
43.30
15.10
13.50
11.00
8.80
6.80
3.70

121.40
53.50
11.80
17.20
13.30
12.60
5.60
6.70

Other fabricated metal products ................
Builders' hardware....... ....................

6.90
6.70

8.30
8.10

Other metal products ............................
Copper products ..............................
Galvanized sheet metal ...................... .
Aluminum sheet metal .........................
Partitions, lockers, and shelves .............

24.00
8.90
8.10
3.80
1.80

25.00
9.60
9.40
1.70
2.50

Stone, clay, and glass products ...................

117.20

129.50

Cement, concrete, and gypsum products ..........
Ready-mixed concrete .........................
Concrete block .................... ..........
Gypsum products ............... ..............
Cement ...............................

60.80
43.00
7.60
6.30
3.00

70.70
43.30
13.00
8.00
5.20

Structural clay products .......................
B r i c k ................. ............ .......
Structural glazed tile ..................... .
Ceramic tile ............................. .

18.50
12.20
2.70
1.50

19.60
13.90
2.30
2.10

Other stone, clay, and glass products ..........
Fiber glass products ......................
Marble and other cut stone ...................
Window glass .................. ..............
Asphalt tile .................................
Sand and gravel ........... ..................
Crushed rock and other aggregate .............

37.90
14.80
9.60
3.00
2.70
2.20
1.90

39.20
10.50
12.50
4.80
4.00
3.60
2.10

Selected products and product groups

See footnote at end of table

Table 10.

Total Cost of Material Components for Each $1,000 of Federal
Building Construction Contract, 1959— Continued

All
buildings

Post office
buildings 1/

$96.90
30.80
18.00
17.30
7.90
4. 20

$51.70
22.80
7.80
8.90
3.30
1.40

4.00
3.50
3.30
2.80
2.30

1.60
1.50
1.00
3.40
0

Heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning
equipment .....................................
Air-conditioning equipment ................... .
Radiators, convectors, and boilers .............
Temperature controls ...........................
Blowers, exhaust, and ventilating fans .........
Oil burners and warm air furnaces ..............
Pumps ...........................................
Storage t a n k s ....... ...........................

65.50
34.70
8.10
7.90
4.40
3.50
2.50
1.80

48.60
23.30
7.00
7.90
1.80
2.70
2.00
2.10

Fixed building equipment (other than plumbing,
heating, or electrical) ...... ................
Elevators and escalators .......................
Laboratory equipment ...........................
Mailboxes ......................................

42.50
26.40
7.50
3.60

29.30
17.80
0
8.90

Plumbing products ................................
Steel and galvanized pipe ......................
Plumbing fixtures ..............................
Cast-iron pipe .................................
Valves and specialties .........................

27.40
10.60
7.80
4.80
2.80

37.90
11.60
13.30
7.90
3.60

Construction equipment (depreciation or rental) ...

19.10

11.70

Lumber products ..................................
Millwork .......................................
Rough and dressed lumber .......................

17.60
8.20
6.70

27.50
14.60
10.70

Selected products and product groups

Electrical equipment, fixtures, and wire .........
Lighting fixtures ...............................
Conduit ........................................
Switchboards and panelboards ...................
Wire and cable ........................... ......
Current-carrying wiring devices ................
Noncurrent-carrying wiring devices (other than
conduit) .....................................
Program systems ................................
Intercom and fire alarm systems ................
Transformers ...................................
Electric generating units ......................

See footnote at end of table

Table 10.

Total Cost of Material Components for Each $1,000 of Federal
Building Construction Contract, 1959— Continued

All
buildings

Post office
buildings l/

Paints and other chemical compounds ..............
Paints ................. .......................

$5.50
2.4.0

$5 •70
3.30

Petroleum products ...............................
Asphalt and tar pitches ....... ................

4 .70
1.30

7.20
2.00

All other groups .................................

2.80

2.30

Selected products and product groups

With space for other Federal activities.

Note: Group totals include products not shown separately.
rounding, sums of groups may not equal totals.

Because of

office buildings. 13/ The former figure is another reflection of the peculiar
requirements of the OASI building, in which these electrical items made up
nearly 16 percent of total cost.
The most important broad materials category, "Metal products," accounted
for over 15 percent of the total cost of post offices. However, this by no
means represents the total contribution of the metalworking industries to
this construction, since it excludes the metal products shown separately in
the equipment categories. The items used in structural framing— "Reinforcing
bars and joists," "Structural steel," and "Wire mesh"— made up half of the
"Metal products" group for post offices, and metal doors and windows, about
one-sixth.
By far the largest single item among "Stone, clay, and glass products"
was ready-mixed concrete, which, at 4-.3 percent, accounted for more than
one-third of the value of the group. This material constituted the frames
and floors of most of the buildings. The small amounts of the raw materials
of concrete separately shown— cement, sand and gravel, and aggregate— were
used in specialized applications such as terrazzo work. Masonry units— brick,
block, and structural tile— which formed much of the exterior walls of the
buildings surveyed are all included in "Stone, clay, and glass products" and
together made up about a fourth of the group.
Electrical equipment and accessories accounted for 5.2 percent of the
total cost of the post offices, and almost half of this was for lighting
fixtures alone.
The proportion, A.9 percent, shown for the group "Heating, ventilating,
and air-conditioning equipment" should not be regarded as completely covering
materials requirements for this class of work. The extensive duct work
needed for air exchange throughout a building was included in "Fabricated
sheet-metal products" and in "Galvanized sheet-metal" under the general
"Metal products" group.
Other major materials groups were "Plumbing products," representing
3.8 percent of total post office cost; "Fixed building equipment," 2.9 percent
and "Lumber products," 2.8 percent. The current low level of utilization of
the last-named was further emphasized by the fact that most "Rough and dressed
lumber," comprising nearly 40 percent of the group's total, actually did not
represent the value of lumber incorporated in the building structure, but
instead, represented the value of lumber used up in form building.

13/ Each "percent of construction contract" represents about #750,000
of annual expenditures at the current annual rate of Federal office building
construction (e.g., #10 million of metal products is represented by the
13.3 percent).

Changes in Materials
A comparison of post office construction costs shown in the present study
and in the previously mentioned study made about 20 years ago indicates that
the proportion all materials represent of total construction cost has changed
only moderately between the two periods, decreasing from 52 to 49 percent,
excluding equipment-use costs, which could not be segregated in the former
survey. 14/ The proportion that individual materials represent of total
materials cost, however, shows very marked changes, reflecting not only
different materials usages for similar purposes, but also changing building
standards and requirements, and differential price movements. The tabulation
on the following page presents these changes for a number of groups of mate
rials. Data from the current survey are shown for all projects studied, as
well as for post offices only. Although little is known of the characteristics
of the projects in the older survey, it is probable that they are more nearly
comparable with the post office group of the current survey than with the
overall group.
These comparisons illustrate several basic shifts which have occurred
over the years. One of these is the appearance of new types of fixed equip
ment accepted as standard in modern buildings. Thus, the increase in the
heating and ventilating category reflects the air conditioning which is almost
universal in modern office buildings. This addition of new equipment has the
effect of reducing the relative importance of older materials, even though
their volume of use is still extensive. Thus, although brick was the common
exterior material in the current study, it accounted for less than 4 percent
of total material cost, as compared with more than 8 percent in the earlier
survey.
A change in construction method during the period is strikingly illus
trated. Twenty years ago, concrete was commonly batched and mixed at the
construction site; the use of ready-mixed concrete was just beginning to assume
significance. Today, the procession of concrete mixer trucks during a pour
at a construction job is a common sight. This accounts for the decline in
the total for cement. sand and gravel, and crushed stone (the raw materials
of concrete) from 14 percent of total materials cost to 2 percent, and in part
for the increase in concrete products from 4 to 12 percent.

14/ See footnote 6, this bulletin. A decrease was also noted in the
percentage of total cost going to on-site labor— from 31 to 29 percent. The
residual costs, representing other expenses and profit, thus increased from
17 to 22 percent over the period. It is likely that a significant part of
this increase is due to increases in such overhead costs as those for social
security and other taxes, contributions to welfare programs and other fringe
benefits, modern recordkeeping, and charges arising from wider equipment usage.

The rise of new types of materials, not necessarily serving entirely new
purposes, and the decline of more traditional materials are reflected in the
increases for glass and metal doors, sash, frames, and trim and the decrease
in forest products. For example, 20 years ago, fiber glass was a novel
building material; today, it is the preferred material for several acoustical
and thermal applications.

Materials group 1/

All materials ................................
Iron and steel and their products ..............
Structural and reinforcing steel .............
Plumbing supplies and fixtures ...............
Heating and ventilating equipment 2/ .........
Hardware .....................................
Metal doors, sash, frames, and trim ..........
Wire and wire works products .................
Other products of iron and steel .............
Stone, clay, and glass products ................
Cement ................... ...................
Brick, hollow tile, and other clay products ...
Sand and gravel ..............................
Marble, granite, slate, and other stone
products ....................................
Concrete products .............................
Wall plaster and wall board ............... .
Tiling, floor and wall, and terrazzo .........
Crushed stone ................................
Glass ........................................
Forest products ................................
Lumber and timber ............................
Planing mill products ........................
Electrical wiring, fixtures, and supplies ......
Roofing, roof insulation, waterproofing, and
caulking .....................................
Paints and varnishes ......... .................
Copper and sheet metal .........................
O t h e r ......................... ................
1/
2/

Percent of total
materials cost
Current study
Twenty
Post
All
years
offices
ago
projects

100.0

36.8

42.1
11.0

48.0

11.9

8 .2
7.4
2.6
2.3
.4
4.0
33.8
8.3
8.2
4.3
4.1
3.8
1.9
1.3

1.0
.9

16.2
8.5
7.7
4.8

5.3

12.8

1.6

1.3
3.8
.7
7.2
21.9

25.3

5.2
1.4

8.1

1.1

3.3
.4

3.5
.7

1.9

2.5
11.5

10.0
1.2
.3
.4
3.5
3.5
.7
.7
18.4

2 .8
1.2
.8
3.6

Products were grouped to conform with previous study.
In current study, includes air-conditioning equipment.

Note:

14.3
7.5
9.8

Because of rounding, group totals may not add to 100

.9
.7
2.7
9.8

1.6
.5
.4
3.2
5.7

1.2
1.1
10.5
.9

1.1

2.6
6.0

Comparisons With School and Highway Construction

A comparison of requirements for the three types of construction studied
by the Bureau for this series of reports reveals that although total man-hours
per 31,000 of contract are remarkably similar, there is considerable variation
in requirements among the affected industries:
Total man-hour requirements per
$1,000 of construction contract
Buildings

All industries .........

Schools

Federal
office
buildings

212

Highways l/

227

Construction, on-site ....

Off-site .................

12£

128

130

Construction ...........
Manufacturing ..........
Transportation .........
Trade and service ......
Mining .................
Other ..................

10
78
8
20

10
79
9
20
(2/)
12

15
13
23
9

(2/0
12

1/ Data for highways relate to 1958; data for schools and
Federal buildings relate to 1959. If the highway data were
adjusted for increases in prices and productivity between 1958
and 1959, the total hours would probably not differ substantially
from those for schools.
2/ Included in "Other."
In analyzing this table, it should be borne in mind that because of the
basic differences in locations and construction processes, relatively more
operations are performed at the site of highway than of building construction.
For example, the bulk of the concrete used in highway work is batched and
mixed on site by the contractor's own forces; ready-mixed concrete is used
only for the smaller applications. On the other hand, as previously noted,
most concrete used in building construction is ready mixed. Moreover, the
highway contractor's forces produce and process more than half of the aggre
gate required in their concrete, using sources as close as possible to the
batch plants. Further, maintenance and other supporting services are neces
sarily performed on-site to a greater extent for highway than for building
construction. This in part accounts for the differences shown in off-site
requirements in the construction industry.

Differences in industry impact as between highways and the buildings
segments reflect differences in the construction process. In the case of
highways, many skilled workers operate extremely expensive units of equipment
to move earth and place materials of a relatively low order of fabrication;
in building construction, most of the journeymen place by hand materials of
relatively high cost and degree of fabrication. Thus, in the preceding
tabulation, manufacturing man-hours are considerably lower for highway than
for building construction, whereas mining hours are higher, reflecting the
labor of extracting rock, sand, and gravel.
Some of these basic differences are further illustrated by the percent
distribution of construction costs:
Buildings
Highways
1/
Total ........
Materials ......
On-site wages ..,
Equipment 2/ ...,
Other 2 / ...... .

Schools

Federal
office
buildings

100.0

54.1
25.7
1.4
18.8

51.3
29.0
1.9
17.8

2 3 .9

13.5

1/ Based on data from the U.S. Bureau of
Public Roads.
2/ Rental or depreciation charges.
3/ Overhead and profit.
Materials requirements for highways and buildings, although similar in
percent of total construction cost, are quite different in type. For highways,
four-fifths of the total materials value was accounted for by concrete (cement
and bituminous), structural and reinforcing steel, and equipment fuels and
lubricants. These represented a minor portion of total materials costs for
buildings.
Similarly, the share of total on-site wages received by some construction
trades differed radically on the two types of construction. Thus, on highway
construction nearly one-third of all on-site wages went to equipment operators
(excluding truckdrivers), as compared with less than one-thirtieth on building
construction. Truckdrivers received over 10 percent of all on-site wages for
highway construction, but less than 1 percent for building construction.
Unskilled workers, however, appeared to receive only a little more of the
on-site wage dollar in highway than in building construction, although the
data available do not afford a precise comparison.

Appendix A.

Scope and Method of Survey

Characteristics of the Universe and Selection of the Sample
This study is an attempt to measure labor requirements for construction
of the types of general administrative buildings needed for nonmilitary
activities of the Federal Government. With some exceptions, such buildings
are constructed under the authority of the Public Buildings Service of the
General Services Administration. The survey was based, therefore, on a
sample of office building projects completed, or substantially completed, by
PBS during fiscal I960. The sample of 22 projects (table A), representing
about half of the universe, was drawn with consideration to type of project
(whether primarily post offices, general Federal office buildings, officelaboratories, or unique projects), total construction contract cost, and
broad regional location. 15/ Sampling within the cells was not uniform,
owing to the desirability of representing some cells with only one project,
and variable weights were therefore assigned to the sample projects. Unless
otherwise specified, all data presented in this report are based on weighted
data.
It should be noted that the study is not representative of all construc
tion under PBS, which from time to time is responsible for many types of
construction, including hospitals, colleges, and warehouses.
Man-Hour Estimates
Estimates of total man-hour requirements in this study are a combination
of data resulting from two different procedures. For the on-site activities,
which are segregated and specific, direct primary labor data were available.
For all other activities, however, such as the manufacture and transportation
of building materials, which are in their nature diffuse and nonspecific with
respect to a particular project, an estimating procedure was used. The two
methods are described below.

15/ The States included in each of the regions were as follows:
Northeast— Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey,
New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; North Central— Illinois,
Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota,
Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; South— Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District
of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi,
North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and
West Virginia; West— Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada,
New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

Table A.

Projects Included in Survey of Labor Requirements for the Construction of Federal Office Buildings, 1959

Percent of
total cost
On-site Mate
rials
wages

Construction
contract
cost 1/
(thousands)

Floor area
(1,000
square
feet)

0n-site
man-hours
per $1,000
cost

All buildings 2/ .............

«p0446
*6,--

3,261

97.1

29.0

53.3

November 1957

November I960

Headquarters, Bureau of Old-Age
and Survivors Insurance,
Baltimore, Md...............

|24., 172

1,426

83.4

25.8

56.4

November 1957

June I960

9,965

390

101.0

29.6

52.8

April 1958

July i960

4 ,16 6

2,665
592

280
138
30

88.1
107.8
12 4 .2

28.2
35.2
37.1

58.9
48.0
53.9

1
1
1

March 1958
April 1958
June 1958

April I960
December 1959
November 1959

Post office buildings: ij
Omaha, Nebr.................
Kansas City, Kans...........
Burlington, Iowa ...........
Lafayette, La...............
Biloxi, Miss........ ...... .
Leavenworth, Kans...........
Abingdon, Va ................
Redwood Falls, Minn.........
Durham, N.H.................
McKinney, Tex...............
Marshfield, Mo. ............
Lafayette, Term.............
Manning, S.C................
Burlington, Vt..............

7,226
1,904
1,105
1,005
918
857
532
397
371
317
286
266
252
2,357

415
82
48
50
44
36
33
17
22
19
13
12
16
136

93.0
107.6
120.7
99.2
102.0
88.5
150.7
96.2
113.6
133.1
103.7
107.6
144.0
109.9

30.3
34.0
36.8
27.8
28.5
29.7
31.7
24.3
36.7
35.2
31.3
28.7
24.1
31.7

5 2 .1

1
2
2
3
3
2
3
2
1
3
2
3
3
1

April 1958
March 1958
March 1958
October 1958
April 1958
March 1959
November 1958
June 1958
May 1958
May 1958
June 1958
September 1958
June 1958
June 1958

November i960
November 1959
November 1959
June I960
November 1959
July I960
February 1960
August 1959
June 1959
June 1959
July 1959
October 1959
July 1959
March I960

Laboratory office:
Morris, Minn................
Oxford, Miss................
Riverside, Calif............

507
471
116

22
27
7

100.1
108.6
109.8

26.3
22.9
38.9

1
2
2

August 1958
August 1958
November 1958

November 1959
September 1959
August 1959

Type of building

Communicable Disease Center,
Atlanta, Ga.................
Federal office buildings:
Albuquerque, N. Mex.........
Huntington, W. Va ...........
Mt. Hope, W. Va.............

1/
2/
2/

45.5
55.6
50.1
61.1
44.5
48.2
5 2 .0
4 2 .6

53.4
51.1
45.0
49.7
45.9
4 6 .2

53.4
41.4

Weight
2/

Construction
Started

Completed

Includes net effect of change orders; i.e., modifications of original plans or specifications subsequent to contract award.
Number of projects represented by sample project.
Cost and area figures unweighted; all others weighted.
Digitizedij FRASERspace for other Federal activities.
for With

-1
4

On-Site Man-Hours
With minor exceptions, all Federal construction is subject to the
provisions of the Davis-Bacon Act, which requires that wages paid to mechanics
and laborers must be at rates not lower than those prevailing on similar con
struction in the locality. By administrative regulation, each contractor on
Federal construction is required to file copies of his weekly project payroll
with the Federal agency supervising the project. These payrolls are thus a
primary source of data on production man-hours worked, and wages paid, on a
project. In the current study, the payroll files for the sample projects
were made available for data transcription through the cooperation of the
PBS and its regional offices.
These payrolls were the basic source of the on-site labor data for the
study. However, certain classes of on-site labor are not required to be
reported on the weekly payrolls. These include salaried employees (e.g.,
superintendents, engineers, and clerks) and self-employed contractors.
Moreover, the processing of the payrolls for this study developed an occa
sional question as to completeness or meaning. This additional information
or clarification was obtained by BLS field representatives in the course of
their visits to each contractor for materials data. Where these supplementary
data were obtained in summary form only, they were converted to the detail
required on a judgment basis.
Off-Site Man-Hours
From contractors and subcontractors cooperating in the study, a price
list was obtained of the value of each type of material used in the sample
projects. These material listings were classified into categories consistent
with 5-digit Census of Manufactures product groups. For each of these product
groups, the average amount used per $1,000 of contract construction was deter
mined. Once the average use was calculated, each figure was reduced by a
ratio representing the difference between valuation by the purchaser and
valuation by the producer. 16/ Since all data reported by the contractors
were in purchasers' value, the reduction to producers' value made it consist
ent with Census data published on these various components. These figures
on average dollar value, stated in producers' value of each construction
material per $1,000 of contract value were necessary for each of the
succeeding steps.

16/ The ratio used for this reduction was the purchaser-to-producerratio for these components in new public building construction as developed
for use in the 194-7 interindustry analysis.

Primary Distribution Industries Employment
Man-hours in the distribution industries (trade, transportation, ware
housing, freight forwarding, etc.) at primary level with respect to construc
tion activity were estimated from the difference between producer and
purchaser value for each construction material. The differences were summed
and allotted to trade or transportation sectors by a ratio obtained from
inputs by these sectors to new construction as found in the 194-7 input-output
analysis. A second allocation was made among industries within the transpor
tation sector (rail, truck, etc.) on the basis of 1959 value of production of
the industry. The man-hours for each distribution sector were then determined
by multiplying the value allotted to this sector by the man-hours needed to
produce #1,000 of product in the distribution sectors.
Primary Manufacturing Employment
Primary employment in manufacturing was considered to be that required
to produce items in the construction bill of materials in their final stage
of fabrication. In this stage, the man-hours resulting from public building
construction were found by multiplying the average value of each construction
component by a ratio of manufacturing man-hours to #1,000 of production. 17/
Secondary Employment in All Industries
Secondary employment is defined as the employment in all industries
involved in the production and transportation of building materials and
equipment, from basic extraction to, but not including, the final manufacturing
stage.
To calculate all of the secondary man-hours involved in each construction
product, it was necessary to determine the contribution from each of the
sectors of the economy to the construction bill of materials. To obtain these
contributions from each sector, an interindustry inverse matrix was used. The
matrix was calculated for the United States economy in 1947, by the Bureau of
Labor Statistics. 18/ Since this matrix is stated in 1947 prices, all prices
of the construction components were deflated to 1947 and then grouped into
industry classifications which were consistent with the interindustry study's
57-sector aggregation. This gave the value of construction goods stated in
1947 prices, for each interindustry sector. Each of these figures was in turn

17/ This ratio was established by using the 1959 Survey of Manufactures.
18/ For a further description, see the article by W. Duane Evans and
Marvin Hoffenberg, op. cit.

multiplied by the corresponding coefficients of the inverse matrix. This
procedure indicated the contribution necessary from each of the sectors to
produce the specified construction item used. These products which were
stated in 194-7 prices were then inflated to 1959 prices (the year consistent
with the bill of materials).
The sector contributions to each of the separate construction items were
summed to obtain the total contributions from each sector of the economy to
the construction bill of materials. To translate dollars of product contrib
uted by each sector into employment required by this sector, a ratio of
employment to $1,000 of production was used. These ratios were developed for
each of the 57 interindustry sectors. 19/
Total Man-Hour Requirements
From each off-site stage (primary distribution, primary manufacturing^
and secondary industry), a man-hour figure per $1,000 of Federal building
construction contract was obtained. When these were summed with direct or
on-site man-hours, the total employment effect, within the definition used by
the study, was determined. However, the procedures used in estimating employ
ment generated by new Federal building construction did not include all such
employment. The technique used for the off-site segment covers only employ
ment generated by direct purchases of materials and supplies and implicit in
the depreciation of construction equipment. The following areas of employment
related to the volume of construction activity were not covered: (l) Archi
tectural, surveying, estimating, and other planning employment; (2) inspection
or supervision by the architect or the government during construction;
(3) employment generated by purchases of movable furniture and equipment;
(4) the "multiplier" effect of the respending of wages and profits; and
(5) construction and equipment of new production facilities, if needed to
supply construction materials.

19/ Both price and unit employment ratios were actually calculated on a
450-order aggregation and summed to the 57-order aggregation. The employment
figure was converted to man-hours using BLS average annual hours in each of
the separate sectors.

☆ U. S.

G O VERNM ENT PRINTING O F F IC E : 1962 O - 648318