New Report from Center for American Progress Supports Home Star Initiative:
As the nation struggles to recover from one of the worst economic recessions in decades, unemployment has recently shown some marginal improvement, falling below 10 percent in January. But for workers in the construction and construction-related manufacturing sectors, there is little relief as jobless rates remain at near-Depression levels.
Total construction payroll employment has fallen by 2.1 million since 2006, with residential construction jobs down 38 percent and the jobless rate among experienced construction workers stuck at nearly 25 percent. Overall manufacturing employment has dropped 16 percent since the recession began in December 2007, but for manufacturing tied to construction the numbers are far worse: 30 percent in wood products, 22 percent in items such as window glass and fiberglass insulation, and 19 percent in fabricated metals and heating, ventilating, and air conditioning equipment. With credit still tight and the housing industry still in the doldrums, waiting for market forces to spur a recovery in construction could condemn hundreds of thousands of American families to years of continued economic struggle.
Fortunately, help is on the horizon. This week a bill establishing a HOME STAR program of consumer rebates for home energy efficiency retrofits will be introduced in the Senate thanks to the leadership of Sens. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), among others. Concerned members of Congress, with the Obama administration’s support, have crafted an incentive program to make millions of U.S. homes more energy efficient, swiftly create 168,000 jobs in construction and manufacturing among other industries, save homeowners nearly $10 billion over a decade through lower energy costs, and make a dent in global warming pollution.
http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2010/02/home_star_back_to_work.html