Forty-five states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs between September 2017 and September 2018, while 29 states and DC added construction jobs between August and September, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data. Association officials noted that the continued job gains were a sign of an exceptional business environment, but that difficulty in hiring qualified craft workers could increase contractors’ costs and extend construction times.
“Construction activity is expanding nearly everywhere, as only three states experienced a decline in construction employment over the past year,” said chief economist Ken Simonson. “These results show that contractors remain upbeat about demand for projects going forward. However, further employment gains may be difficult, given low unemployment in most states and an inadequate pipeline for training future construction workers.”
Florida added the most construction jobs during the past year (70,700 jobs, 14.8 percent), as well as the highest percentage of jobs. Construction employment reached a record high in five states: Colorado, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon and Texas.
Only three states shed construction jobs between September 2017 and 2018, while construction employment was unchanged in Missouri and Maryland. The largest declines and steepest percentage losses occurred in New Jersey (-6,100 jobs, -6.1 percent).
Pennsylvania had the largest one-month job gain (3,700 jobs, 1.5 percent) among the 30 locations that added construction jobs between August and September, while Kentucky added the highest percentage of construction jobs for the month (2.2 percent, 1,700 jobs).
From August to September, construction employment declined in 17 states and was unchanged in North Dakota, Iowa, Louisiana and Alaska. Michigan lost the most construction jobs (-2,100, -1.2 percent), while Kansas lost the highest percentage of construction jobs in September (-2.3 percent, -1,400 jobs).