Seventy-six percent of metro areas added construction jobs between August 2017 and August 2016, according to an analysis of federal data from The Associated General Contractors of America. The analysis also showed construction jobs declined in 52 metro areas and stagnated in 32.
The construction job increases come despite a recent AGC survey that reported 70 percent of construction firms are having a hard time finding qualified craft workers to hire.
The metro areas that reported the most construction jobs added between August 2017 and August 2016 were Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Calif., up 15,800 jobs; Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, Calif., up 11,000 jobs; Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, Nev., up 10,900 jobs; Hillsboro-Portland, Ore.-Vancouver, Wash., up 8,500 jobs; and Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla., up 7,400 jobs.
The largest percentage gains were in Lewiston, Idaho-Wash., up 27 percent (400 jobs); Lake Charles, La., up 23 percent (4,800 jobs); Detroit, Dearborn, Livonia, Mich., up 20 percent (4,400 jobs); and Killeen-Temple, Texas, up 17 percent (1,600 jobs).
"While many firms' efforts to increase pay, add benefits and expand the diversity of their workforce appear to be helping, it is still a challenge for many contractors to keep pace with demand," said Ken Simonson, the association's chief economist, in a statement. "It is not yet entirely clear how reconstruction work in Texas and Florida following the two recent hurricanes will impact already tight construction labor markets."
