Construction employment has seen an upward trend in 40 states over the past year, with 24 states and the District of Columbia reporting job additions from August to September. This data comes from a recent analysis of federal employment figures by the Associated General Contractors of America.
Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist, remarked on the positive developments: “It is great that four out of five states have added construction jobs over the past year.” He noted that more states could have experienced gains if there were enough qualified workers to fill available positions.
Between September 2023 and September 2024, Texas led in adding construction jobs with 42,300 new positions, a growth of 5.1 percent. Florida followed closely with 37,100 jobs (5.9 percent), while Ohio and Michigan also saw significant increases. Alaska topped percentage gains with a 21.1 percent rise, adding 3,700 jobs.
Conversely, New York faced the largest job losses over the same period, shedding 6,900 positions or 1.8 percent. Oregon and Maryland also reported notable declines.
In terms of monthly changes from August to September, Texas again led with an addition of 8,100 jobs (0.9 percent). Ohio saw a substantial percentage increase at 2.7 percent with its gain of 6,700 jobs.
Tennessee experienced the most significant monthly job loss with a reduction of 1,600 positions or -1.0 percent. North Dakota had the highest percentage decrease for the month at -2.1 percent.
The association has called on Congress to boost funding for construction workforce training and education programs to mitigate workforce shortages affecting sector growth. Jeffrey D. Shoaf emphasized this need: “Enabling more people to learn about construction as a career opportunity is essential for filling the openings created by many infrastructure projects.”
The organization suggests leveraging opportunities in reauthorizing relevant acts like the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and Carl D. Perkins Technical Career and Technical Education Act to enhance funding for these initiatives.
