Forty-five US states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs between July 2017 and July 2018, while 29 states and D.C. added construction jobs between June and July, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data. Association officials cautioned that continued job gains may depend on swiftly implementing new training and education legislation to equip students and workers to enter the industry.
“Construction job gains over the past year were more widespread across the country than at any time since the beginning of 2016,” said chief economist Ken Simonson. “These results show that contractors are still optimistic about future construction activity. But it will be hard to sustain the increases unless more students learn of these opportunities and receive appropriate training.”
Texas added the most construction jobs during the past year (57,600 jobs, 8.1 percent), while Nevada added the highest percentage of new construction jobs during the past year (10.9 percent, 9,100 jobs).
Only five states shed construction jobs between July 2017 and 2018. The largest and steepest percentage losses occurred in New Jersey (-6,000 jobs, -3.9 percent).
Texas had the largest one-month job gain (10,500 jobs, 1.4 percent) among the 29 states and D.C. that added construction jobs between June and July, while New Mexico (1,000 jobs) and New Hampshire (600 jobs) added the highest percentage of construction jobs for the month, both at 2.1 percent.
From June to July, construction employment declined in 17 states and was unchanged in four: Alaska, North Dakota, Tennessee and Vermont. California lost the most construction jobs in July (-1,700, -0.2 percent), while Mississippi (-1,600 jobs, -3.1 percent) and lost the highest percentage of construction jobs for the month.