Economic and Labor Sizes from the Brazilian Timber Housing Production Sector

Abstract

Brazilian timber housing producers were evaluated through a survey, which was based on face-to-face interviewing supported by a semi-structured questionnaire. Derived from expansive research, this paper aimed to identify labor size and to characterize economic size from this production sector. The sampling process evaluated 50.95% (n = 107) of all producers (n = 210) whose performance was considered close to ideal. This sector is mostly concentrated in micro and small-scale companies, though a small portion of medium-sized companies owned by sole proprietors, families, or small groups of entrepreneurs does exist. Due to compact sizing, no producer was classified as an industry or a large corporation. The main contrast was indicated by the number of direct jobs, whose estimation was about 3,700 workers for the whole studied sector, representing 1% of the overall Brazilian timber industry. Around 95% of timber housing producers are considered micro or small from a labor perspective. Unprecedented information could support discussions for the creation of assertive public policies.

Timber Housing Production Systems in Brazil

“…As such, 95% confidence level and 50% response distribution were considered in accordance with the prescriptions from Raosoft [31]. A similar strategy was used by De Araujo et al [8][9][10][11].…”

“…Brazil was considered as the area of study in this sectoral panorama. In view of the lack of sectoral reports and representations, this survey started from a listing compilation through website searches, over a year, to identify producers and features [8][9][10][11].…”

“…All authors contributed to the data analysis and discussion. The survey stages were carried out in accordance with the methodology designed by De Araujo et al [8][9][10][11] for every approach within the characterization of the studied sector.…”

“…In order to support its development, this broad survey provided scientific papers to characterize this sector from distinct viewpoints. In addition to the present paper, the other survey-related papers addressed: the economic and labour size of producers [9]; the market availability of timber housing techniques [11]; machinery type, size, and obsolescence [8]; and sectoral difficulties and corrective actions [10]. Despite a synergy, the results are not necessarily related to each other.…”

“…All the producers in this region were contacted by phone. Randomly, each producer decided to take part in the survey, respecting own availability and motivation [8][9][10][11].…”