General Contractors ; see light at the end of the tunnel,That light at the end of the tunnel might not be as bright as they would like it, but after staring into the abyss of darkness for the last two years ,any light is better than no light. The fourth quarter of 2011 saw a one percent increase over the fourth quarter of 2010 Tete N. DuBois Consulting says that the increases that came in 2011 are still lagging compared to three years ago ,but that makes three quarters in a row with a slight increase.North Dakota has the lowest unemployment of all the states,and they are still in need of qualified workers.

The fourth quarter jobs report was excellent news for the economy and even better for housing: unemployment among 22-32 year-olds fell to 9.0%, and quarterly job growth in “clobbered cities” was strong at 1.9% (annualized rate).

Economic recovery is essential for housing demand. But these three indicators in the quarterly jobs report tell us whether the recovery in housing demand is underway.

Construction jobs are at the heart that connects jobs and housing. Housing demand leads to more jobs in construction and related industries.

Between the ages of 22 and 32 is prime time when many people form households. During and after the recession, household formation dropped for this age group, and more of them than ever are living with parents or other adults rather than renting or owning their own place. These folks will wait to form their own households and consider homeownership only when their job prospects improve. A key measure for housing demand and homeownership is the unemployment rate for this group and the share of this age group that is employed.

In November, the unemployment rate for 22-32 year-olds dropped sharply to 9.0% from 9.6% in October and is at its lowest level since early 2009 (except for a one-month dip this March). The unemployment rate for all adults also dropped, from 9.0% to 8.6%. In November, 73.9% of 22-32 year-olds were employed (the rest are unemployed or not in the labor force because they’re in school, discouraged from looking, or not looking for other reasons), up from lower September and October levels, so the unemployment drop is not primarily due to young adults leaving the labor force.

But the job market remains difficult for this age group: before the recession, unemployment for 22-32 year-olds followed the overall rate pretty much exactly, but has remained above the all-adults rate even as the unemployment rate has drifted down.

The housing bust had unequal effects nationally, with many markets in south Florida, Arizona, and California facing some of the largest price declines and highest vacancy rates. Job growth anywhere will boost housing demand, but compared to other places, these clobbered cities are in more desperate need of motivated homebuyers to help their local housing markets recover. We define “clobbered cities” as metro areas where home prices dropped at least 35% during the bust (according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency house price index) and where vacancy rates are still over 8% (excluding seasonal or vacation homes, according to the 2010 Census). Metro-level BLS data are released several weeks after the national data, so this indicator is for the previous month.

The five-county metropolitan statistical area added 7,700 jobs between October 2010 and October 2011, On a percentage basis, the 1.5 percent growth outpaced all other major metro areas in New York.

Construction employment grew by 9.4 percent during the past year, tops among sectors in Monroe, Ontario, Wayne, Livingston and Orleans counties. There also was notable growth in business services, leisure and hospitality, retail and manufacturing

Engineers from 24 Commando Engineer Regiment work alongside soldiers from 3rd Battalion The Mercian Regiment to train Afghan soldiers to use heavy equipment

For the past eight weeks, the engineers have been teaching the Afghan soldiers how to operate various pieces of heavy machinery and carry out the tasks required of military engineers on operations.

As the ANA grows and the soldiers increasingly take responsibility for providing security in Helmand, there is a requirement for more infrastructure, whether that be new checkpoints or patrol bases.

At the moment, that work is done by engineers from the Task Force Helmand Engineer Group. However, in order to ensure that the ANA does not remain dependent on ISAF, soldiers from 24 Commando Engineer Regiment have been attached to the Brigade Advisory Group with the specific task of creating a team of specialist Afghan military engineers.

A total of 120 soldiers are being trained to form the ANA’s Engineer Tolay (a company-sized unit). Eleven of the most senior engineers were selected to undergo the plant operating course which involved learning how to operate heavy lifting gear, diggers and trucks.

Major Paul Walters is the Officer Commanding of the Engineer Training Squadron. He said there were a number of challenges to overcome:

"When the warriors [Afghan soldiers] first arrived, they had lots of experience of engineering but many of them couldn’t drive. So we’ve had to go right back to basics. They were eager to learn though and, given their inexperience, what they’ve achieved is even more significant."

After completing their training and passing the course with flying colours, the Afghan engineers were presented with certificates confirming their achievements in a ceremony at the ANA’s Helmand base, Camp Shorabak.

Soldiers from the Afghan National Army Engineer Tolay proudly posing with their certificates

Lieutenant Mirza Mohammed was one of the Afghan soldiers on the course:

"The training from ISAF to the ANA has gone really well," he said. "It’s the first time I’ve been trained like this and it has been really good."

Over the coming weeks, the Afghan engineers will put their new skills into practice when they rejoin their units operating in various parts of Helmand province.

Engineering is just one of the skills that the Brigade Advisory Group are helping to train the Afghan soldiers in. Gunners, logisticians, counter-improvised explosive device experts, as well as medics and mechanics, are all being trained to expand the ANA’s expertise in these particular areas.

by Sara Polsky

The VA has announced changes coming this October.

Eligible GI’s will be able to use the Post-9/11 GI Bill for programs such as noncollege degrees, on-the-job training, and correspondence courses, and they will be eligible to receive a portion of the national monthly housing allowance rate when enrolled only in distance learning courses.