Construction Employment Reaches 10-Year High; Wages at Record High

The construction industry added 23,000 jobs in September, climbing to a total of 7.28 million construction jobs in the U.S., the highest construction employment rate since May 2008, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC).

Since September 2017, construction employment has increased by 315,000 jobs and the unemployment rate dropped by more than half a percentage to 4.1 percent.

“The construction industry added workers and increased pay in the past year at rates higher than the overall economy,” AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson said in a statement. “However, the pool of unemployed workers with construction experience has nearly evaporated, pushing up contractors’ costs and adding to the project completion times.”

Hourly earnings in the construction industries saw a 3.1 percent boost from the previous year, growing to an average of $30.18 in September, exceeding $30 for the first time.