Workforce
Construction Boasts Biggest Jobs Jump in Months, But Uncertainty Lingers
The construction industry boosted hiring by 17,000 positions in May, with nonresidential contractors leading the way with an overall net gain of 15,700 positions, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Propelled largely by specialty contractors' hiring of an estimated 14,600 new workers, the construction industry saw an overall increase of 19,000 jobs in February, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' March 7 jobs report. This latest overall gain adds up to an increase of 174,000 industry positions over the past 12 months.
At the same time, BLS reported that construction's unemployment rate for February was 7.2%, an increase from January's 6.5% and last February's 7.0%.
The vast majority of specialty trade contractors' new hires were among companies working in the residential construction sector, who collectively added 12,600 jobs during February, according to BLS. Nonresidential specialty trade contractors filled an estimated 2,000 positions during the month.
The reverse was true of building contractors, with companies working in the nonresidential sector contributing the vast majority of new positions, with 1,700 of the category's overall increase of 1,800 jobs.
Heavy and civil engineering construction firms added approximately 2,500 positions during February, according to BLS, while building contractors hired an estimated 1,800 workers during the month.
“The February jobs report suggests that contractors’ ongoing optimism, as seen in ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, is justified,” said Anirban Basu, Associated Builders and Contractors' chief economist, in a statement.
Basu commented that the construction industry's addition of 19,000 jobs makes February "the strongest month of growth since the third quarter of 2024, and the sizable jump in the industry unemployment rate indicates that the labor supply can accommodate ongoing hiring."
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Calling the overall economy's addition of 151,000 jobs during February “perfectly decent," Basu commented that "Following several weeks of concerning economic data and rising economic uncertainty, a good-but-boring jobs report is a welcome development.”
Despite construction's across-the-board job gains in February, Basu added, "Federal job and spending cuts, as well as elevated uncertainty, could eventually diminish construction activity at the margins, but those effects have yet to appear in these employment data.”
Also recognizing the industry's solid job growth in February was Ken Simonson, Associated General Contractors of America's chief economist, but he also expressed concerns about the future.
“Construction job growth hit a five-month high in February, following several months of lackluster gains,” Simonson said in a statement. “However, industry employment and wage growth have been slowing over much of the past year. Uncertainty, especially regarding tariffs and immigration policies, is causing new projects to be paused and may keep construction employment from rising further.”
Additionally, AGC's press statement added that in addition to uncertainty over the impact of tariffs on materials prices, "the Trump administration’s decision to end work authorizations for workers from a variety of countries is shrinking an already tight labor market, making it hard for firms to keep pace with construction demand."
