Thirty-eight states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs between March 2017 and March 2018, while 29 states added construction jobs between February and March, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data. Association officials said the job gains are coming amid strong private-sector demand and new public-sector investments in school and airport construction.
“Construction employment continues to expand in most parts of the country as private-sector demand remains strong and limited, new public investments in infrastructure are beginning to have an impact,” said chief economist Ken Simonson. “The two greatest risks to future construction job growth are a lack of available, qualified workers and the potential impacts of new tariffs being imposed by and on the United States.”
California added the most construction jobs (54,400 jobs, 6.8 percent) during the past year, while West Virginia (11.2 percent, 3,400 jobs) added the highest percentage of new construction jobs.
Twelve states shed construction jobs between March 2017 and March 2018. North Dakota lost the highest total and percentage of construction jobs (-4,300 jobs, -14.8 percent.
Twenty-nine states added construction jobs between February and March. Texas added the most (3,800 jobs, 0.5 percent), while Alaska added the highest percentage of construction jobs for the month (2.6 percent, 400 jobs).
Nineteen states and the District of Columbia lost construction jobs between February and March, while construction employment was unchanged in Vermont and Wyoming. New York lost the most construction jobs for the month (-5,200 jobs, -1.3 percent), while Rhode Island lost the highest percentage of construction jobs (-2.6 percent, -500 jobs).