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The share of immigrants in the global construction workforce reached an all-time high in 2024. However, that number is likely to decline in the future due to recent US policy, experts told Construction Dive.
This decrease will have detrimental impacts on commercial construction, which has a extreme need for workers and relies on foreign-born professionals for craft work, the sources said.
In 2024, 26.3% of the population the construction labor was immigrantsaccording to a National Association of Home Builders analysis of the Census Bureau’s annual American Community Survey. The Detailed Population and Employment Survey asks about country of birth but not work authorization status.
Among trade workers — positions such as plumbers, electricians and welders — the number of immigrants is even greater; approximately one third of these workers are foreigners.
The report did not distinguish between the residential and non-residential construction sectors. But Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, noted that the concentration of foreign-born workers appears to be higher in the residential sector.
For example, “the highest percentages of foreign-born workers are all occupations heavily used in housing construction, while trades with lower shares than the national average, such as equipment operators, are used more in non-residential construction, including infrastructure,” Simonson said.
The record share of foreign workers in construction was recorded before President Donald Trump takes the White House for a second term in January 2025. The data highlights the industry’s reliance on a critical mass of immigrant workers, even as it struggles to fill jobs.
With economists predicting that the U.S. could soon trend toward a negative immigration rate, if it hasn’t already crossed that threshold, the labor shortage could grow even further.
The trades in which immigrants work
At the national level, immigrants represent one in five workers for all industries, according to Riordan Frost, senior research analyst at Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies. In the construction trades, it’s about one in three, according to Frost.
Some positions, including drywall installers and roofers, have even higher percentages of immigrants (57 percent and 53 percent, respectively) and are more likely to be seen in home builder jobs. Meanwhile, structural iron and steel workers and heavy equipment operators, who make up 16 percent and 14 percent of immigrant workers, respectively, are often found in non-residential locations.
According to Frost’s research, for the seven metros that issued the most home building permits between 2019 and 2023, an average of 54% of the trades workforce was foreign-born.
Although the concentration of immigrant workers appears to be higher in the residential sector, commercial contractors still rely on these professionals and have begun to see damaging effects of US immigration policy under Trump, industry experts said.
“Commercial contractors need to pay close attention to immigration data because it directly affects labor availability and their ability to meet project demand,” said Kristen Swearingen, vice president of government affairs for Associated Builders and Contractors.
The decrease in the construction workforce
In January, the US The Census Bureau reported that net immigration – the flow of people entering and leaving the country – peaked at 2.7 million for the year ending July 1, 2024. That number fell to 1.3 million in 2025 and could further decline to about 321,000 once data for 2026 is available, the bureau said.
In fact, net negative migration it may already have happened, according to a January report from the Brookings Institute. Brookings estimated net migration to be between -10,000 and -295,000 by calendar year 2025.
Whatever the actual number, the result is largely due to Trump’s policy of reinforcement Incursions and presence of Immigration and Customs increase deportations. The White House issued a statement last month highlighting this impact of Trump’s immigration policyincluding negative net migration data from Brookings.
“I think this shows the vulnerability of construction to measures that effectively close the borders to people who would otherwise be potential construction workers, while immigration enforcement is already keeping some workers away from jobs,” Simonson said.
For these reasons, it is logical to assume “that the percentages of foreign-born workers in occupations with a large amount of immigrants will have declined in 2025 and 2026,” he said.
Even if ICE officers don’t conduct workplace raids on every major project in the country, the ripple effect of stricter enforcement can still reduce the number of workers.
“ABC has heard from members across the country that immigration enforcement has been tightened since 2024, scaring their employees from going to work and possibly being arrested for violations — these are foreign-born workers who are here legally,” Swearingen said. “This has caused work delays and cost overruns for general contractors.”
Groups that defend legal work paths
The main contractor groups have intended switch to increase options and the means for workers to come to the US and join the workforce legally.
“We and many contractors continue to urge policymakers in Washington to create a pathway for employers to sponsor skilled workers when none are available domestically,” Simonson said.
Swearingen said the ABC hopes an effective market-based worker visa system will be introduced in the near term.
“Along with appropriate provisions, this solution would strengthen America’s immigration laws and provide a legal pathway for needed workers,” he said. “By basing access on market needs, lawmakers can ensure that the construction workforce better reflects actual economic conditions and help stabilize projects, costs and timelines.”
