New Data Reports that Construction Employment Has Increased in 29 States

New Data Reports that Construction Employment Has Increased in 29 States The Labor Department says that between August 2018 and August 2019, the construction industry saw an increase in jobs, particularly in states like Texas and Florida. Oct 11, 2019 In early October, the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) released its analysis of Labor Department data on employment in the construction industry. With recent concerns about a workforce shortage in construction, the influx of jobs in the last year is a positive trend. The analysis found that 39 states, including the District of Columbia, added construction jobs between August 2018 and August 2019, and construction employment increased in 29 states from July to August of 2019. Association officials suspect that the lack of increase in construction jobs in September of 2019 could be due to overall workforce shortages. The shortage, it seems, could be due to the fact that there are simply not enough people to hire. The association’s chief economist, Ken Simonson, said the following: “Even more states probably would have posted gains in construction employment if firms could find enough people to hire…They are finding most craft positions hard to fill, even though average pay in construction pays is higher than the all-industry average in nearly every state.” The following results show the trends in construction over the past year and which states showed the most adjustment. States that added the most construction jobs from most to least. Texas added the most construction jobs over the year (43,900 jobs, 5.9%), followed by California (34,300 jobs, 4.0%), Florida (20,900 jobs, 3.8%), and Arizona (15,400 jobs, 9.7%). North Dakota added the highest percentage of construction jobs over 12 months (12.1%, 3,100 jobs), followed by Nevada (11.7%, 10,500 jobs), Arizona, and New Mexico (9.2%, 4,300 jobs). Construction employment reached a record high in Nebraska and Texas. Let's block ads! (Why?)