Thirty-nine states added construction jobs from August 2018 to August 2019, and 29 states added construction jobs from July to August, according to www.agc.org.
“Even more states probably would have posted gains in construction employment if firms could find enough people to hire,” says Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America. “They are finding most craft positions hard to fill, even though average pay in construction is higher than the all-industry average in nearly every state.”
Texas added the most construction jobs—43,900—between August 2018 and August 2019. California, Florida and Arizona also added a large number of construction jobs. Additionally, North Dakota added the highest percentage of new construction jobs during the past year, followed by Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico.
Florida added the most construction jobs from July to August—4,100—followed by New York, Nevada, Missouri and Texas. Nevada added the highest percentage of construction jobs for the month.
Ten states lost construction jobs between August 2018 and August 2019. Louisiana lost the highest number of construction jobs—10,100—followed by Ohio, Vermont and Connecticut. Construction employment fell in 21 states from July to August, and Tennessee lost more than any other state—1,900.
