Construction employment rose in March as the industry added 39,000 jobs during the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. The figure marked the 12th consecutive monthly increase in construction.
The latest BLS national employment report, released April 5, showed increases in all segments of construction, followed by nonresidential specialty contractors, which gained 16,300 jobs.
Building construction increased by 7,800 and heavy construction and civil engineering jobs increased by 6,000.
The BLS noted that the increase of 39,000 construction jobs was about double the average monthly gain of 19,000 over the previous 12 months.
In another upbeat metric, construction also added 270,000 jobs in the 12 months ended March, a 3.4% increase.
Transversal gains
Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, said in a statement: “All types of construction companies were hiring in March.”
AGC said the 39,000 new construction jobs in March represented the industry’s biggest monthly increase since January 2023.
But Simonson added that “the record number of construction jobs at the end of February indicates that contractors would have hired even more workers if they were available to keep pace with demand.”
He was referring to a separate BLS report, released April 2, that showed construction job openings rose to 441,000 at the end of February, from 409,000 a year earlier.
AGC officials said difficulties filling positions make it more difficult for contractors to take on new projects and finish existing ones on schedule.
The BLS also reported that average hourly earnings for non-supervisory and construction production employees rose 4.9% in March compared to the previous year’s level.
Decrease in unemployment rates
In another bright sign, the March construction jobless rate fell to 5.4% from 7% in February. It was also down from the previous year’s rate of 5.6%. BLS jobs figures are adjusted for seasonal differences; the bureau’s unemployment rate statistics are not seasonally adjusted.
Anirban Basu, chief economist at Associated Builders and Contractors, said in a statement: “Structural transformations in the economy, including domestic supply chains, increased demand for data centers and increased infrastructure, are making it difficult for many project owners to expect lower construction. shipping costs.”
Economically
Overall, the US economy gained 303,000 jobs in March and its unemployment rate fell to 3.8% from 3.9% in February.
Basu said the new BLS release “was a very successful employment report and indicates that the recession is not coming soon.”
But on the other hand, Basu said, “Those looking for lower inflation and interest rates will not be comforted by this release.”
