THE UK CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

THE UK CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

The UK construction industry is a unique, complex and often
fragmented industry. Nevertheless, in 2008 the total turnover of the
industry was £80 billion or the equivalent of 6% of the UK gross domestic product, making it an important contributor to the wealth of
the nation. The industry employs approximately 182,000 contractors,
1.8 million people – a high percentage of which are self-employed
– with a ratio of male to female of 7:1. The construction industry is
defined in accordance with Division 45 of the Revised 2003 Standard
Classifi cation to include the following:
• General construction and demolition work: establishments engaged in building and civil engineering work not specialised to be
classified elsewhere
• Construction and repair of buildings: establishments engaged in
construction, improvement and repair of both residential and nonresidential buildings, including specialists engaged in sections of
construction and repair work such as bricklaying and the erection
of steel and concrete structures, etc.
• Civil engineering: construction of roads, railways, airport runways, bridges, tunnels, pipelines, etc.
• Installation of fi xtures and fi ttings: establishments engaged in the
installation of fixtures and fi ttings including; gas fittings, plumbing, electrical fi xtures and fittings, etc.
• Building completion work: establishments engaged in work such
as painting and decorating, plastering, onsite joinery, etc.