Construction employment added 11,000 jobs on net in June, according to Associated Builders and Contractors. On a year-over-year basis, the industry has expanded by 64,000 jobs—an increase of 0.8%.
The construction unemployment rate rose from 4.1% in May to 4.7% in June. The national unemployment rate for all industries fell from 4.3% to 4.2% as the U.S. economy added 57,000 jobs.
Nonresidential construction added 19,900 jobs in June, with gains in all three subsectors. Nonresidential specialty trade contractors added 14,100 jobs; nonresidential building added 3,200 jobs; and heavy and civil engineering added 2,600 jobs.
“Today’s jobs report was full of positive signs for the nonresidential side of the industry,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “The nonresidential segment continued to add jobs in June and has grown several times faster than the economywide average over the past 12 months.
“At the same time, the supply of labor appears adequate to fuel ongoing hiring,” Basu continued. “The industry’s unemployment rate rose to 4.7%, higher than in any June since 2021, and that slack took some pressure off of wage escalation. Average hourly earnings for nonmanagerial construction workers rose at the slowest pace since last September. With ABC contractors signaling ongoing hiring intentions, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, it appears likely that the industry will continue to expand its employment base over the coming months.”
