Construction employment rose in 35 states and the District of Columbia between February 2017 and February 2018, according to the Associated General Contractors of America.
Thirty-eight states added construction jobs between January and February 2018.
The highest number of jobs added over the past year came in California, which added 74,000 construction jobs between February 2017 and February 2018, a 9.8 percent increase.
Other states seeing significant construction employment increases over the past year include Texas, which added 33,900 jobs, a 4.8 percent increase, and Florida, which added 31,700, a 6.3 percent increase.
“The construction industry continues to add employees in most of the nation, despite a shortage of workers with construction experience,” said AGCA Chief Economist Ken Simonson.
Fourteen states saw decreases in construction employment over the past year. North Dakota declined the most, by 16.3 percent, losing 4,800 construction jobs.
Between January and February, New York added the most construction jobs with 7,700, an increase of 2 percent, followed by Florida, which grew by 7,100 jobs, an increase of 1.4 percent from January.
Eleven states saw declines in construction jobs between January and February. Washington state registered the largest loss, declining by 1,500 jobs, followed by Alaska, which lost 800.
