Construction Workforce
Specialty Trade Contractors Propel Construction Industry to Sept. Jobs Gain of 25K
While the U.S. economy as a whole added an estimated 12,000 jobs, construction added 8,000 overall, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Illustration by Scott Hilling/ENR, original elements by Getty Images
Construction employment continues on the upswing, as the industry gained 25,000 jobs in September, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported.
In its latest monthly employment report, released on Oct. 4, the bureau notes that construction jobs continued their upward trend. BLS says the September figure was “similar” to the average monthly gain of 19,000 for the previous 12 months.
The report also shows that all but one industry segment recorded a jobs increase in September. The largest contribution to construction's overall jobs gain came from specialty trade contractors, which added an estimated 22,800 positions overall. Nonresidential specialty trade contractors had the strongest results, gaining 17,000 positions, while residential specialty trade contractors added 5,800 jobs.
Heavy and civil engineering construction recorded an increase of 3,800
The outlier was nonresidential building construction, which saw a decline of 2,900 in September. Meanwhile, residential building contractors added an estimated 2,000 positions.
Overall, construction’s total employment has climbed by 238,000 for the 12 months ended in September, a gain of about 3%.
Anirban Basu, Associated Builders and Contractors' chief economist, noted that the industry’s results for September represent construction’s fifth-straight monthly jobs increase. In another positive indicator, Basu said in a statement that the previous two months’ figures were revised upward, by a total of 72,000.
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“Hiring should persist in the coming months, with contractors expecting to increase their staffing levels over the next six months,” Basu said. Noting the U.S. economy's overall jobs gain of 254,000 during September, he added, “Beyond the construction industry, this jobs report blew past expectations.”
BLS data on construction’s unemployment rates was somewhat mixed. It shows that the industry’s September rate was 3.7%, up from August’s 3.2%. But the rate was down slightly from the year-earlier 3.8%
Ken Simonson, Associated General Contractors' chief economist, said in a statement, “The persistently low unemployment rate for jobseekers with construction experience and the high level of job openings suggest the industry would hire even more workers if they could find enough qualified applicants.”
AGC said that a separate BLS report, issued Oct. 1, indicated that there were 370,000 construction job openings at the end of August, which exceeded the 338,000 workers hired for all of that month.
The BLS jobs figures are adjusted for seasonal differences; its unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.
