Construction employment outpaced pre-pandemic employment levels in 32 states in April, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America.
Construction job openings, meanwhile, reached 415,000 at the end of March—the highest number of March construction job openings since 2001 and a 20% jump compared with April 2021.
“Construction employment gains have stalled in many states in recent months as the pool of available workers has dried up,” AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson said in a statement. “It will be hard to satisfy demand for private projects and infrastructure unless more workers are available to fill the record number of openings.”
Compared with February 2020, the last month before the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, 32 states increased construction employment levels in April, while 17 states and D.C. had construction employment declines. Construction employment in Alaska was unchanged.
New York recorded the largest construction employment drop compared with February 2020, shedding 27,700 jobs, a 6.8% decline. Utah recorded the most construction employment gains compared with February 2020, adding 16,300 jobs, a 14.3% growth for the state.
The full AGC report can be found here.
