11,000 more jobs for construction in September, but contractors still scrape for skilled labor

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The construction sector added 11,000 jobs in September and contractors are raising pay faster than other sectors, according to an analysis from the Associated General Contractors (AGC) of America on Friday.
Ken Simonson, chief economist for AGC, said construction companies have many projects to work on but suffered a decline in nonresidential workers.

“Construction firms have plenty of projects but a dip in nonresidential employment last month shows how hard it has been to find enough skilled workers. Job openings remain stubbornly high, even though the industry has been raising hourly pay at an elevated rate,” Simonson added.

There were more than 8 million people, seasonally adjusted, working in construction last month. That was an 11,000 or 0.1% gain from August, AGC officials said.

The sector added 217,000 jobs during the past 12 months, which is 2.8% increase. Residential builders and specialty trades added 12,600 employees in September 55,300 (1.7%) over 12 months, officials added. The association analyzed government data

However, employment at nonresidential contractors, who cover nonresidential building and specialty trade contractors along with heavy and civil engineering construction firms, lost 1,300 positions for the month. Overall, these contractors grew by 161,000 positions or 3.5% since September 2022.

Unemployment among jobseekers with construction experience was 3.8% in September. This was one of the lowest September rates in the data’s 24-year history, officials noted. A different government report showed there were 360,000 job openings at the end of August, the second-highest August total in the series’ history.

AGC analysts reported average hourly earnings for production and nonsupervisory employees in construction, which includes most craft and many office workers, climbed 5.5% over the year to $34.54 per hour. Construction companies in August provided a wage premium of nearly 19% compared to average hourly employees for production employees in the private sector, officials added.

AGC urged public officials to boost investments in programs that expose workers to construction as a career opportunity, as officials noted not enough people were aware of the career path despite the high pay and no requirement for a college degree. AGC officials called on Congress and the Biden administration to find ways to allow more people with construction skills to lawfully enter the country and work the profession.

Stephen E. Sandherr, chief executive officer of AGC, said allowing more people in the country to legally work in construction will provide short term life for labor shortages.

“Allowing more people into the country to lawfully work in construction will provide short-term relief for labor shortages without creating a new segment of the population that is dependent on public support. At the same time, we need to show more American workers how much they can earn, and how little they will need to spend, to begin careers in construction,” Sandherr added.