Builders and other tradespeople are quitting Christchurch as delays to the city's anticipated reconstruction begin to affect building companies.
The Certified Builder's Association says that, far from an influx of staff arriving for a building boom, there's evidence some businesses are having to let staff go.
Chief executive Grant Florence says he has heard that one of the association's members has had to let go between 30 and 40 staff in recent months.
Many smaller companies recruited extra staff in anticipation of an influx in business but have had to downsize because of insufficient work, he says.
