A new survey shows that despite the ongoing need for more construction workers, the industry’s payroll has increased by around 292,000 jobs in the last year.
Conducted by the Washington-based Associated Builders and Contractors, the survey charts increases in all industry segments, with nonresidential building seeing a gain of 27,000 jobs since September of 2021.
Nonresidential specialty and trade contractors saw a jump of nearly 115,000 workers in that same period of time, with residential specialty trade jobs up by 77,500.
More modest gains were posted in the heavy and civil engineering segments, with an increase of 39,800 jobs in the last year. Residential building, meanwhile, was up by 33,000 jobs.
The numbers were also up in most segments when looked at a month-over-month basis, although in that category the heavy and civil engineer segment saw a slight decline of 500 jobs, followed by a drop of 100 jobs in residential building.
In a statement, Anirban Basu, American Builders and Contractors chief economist, noted that “despite elevated compensation costs, employers continue to hire aggressively.”
Basu additionally noted that even in the face of a possible recession, “most contractors remain upbeat regarding near-term prospects.”
Observing that contractors in general are anticipating increased sales in the coming months, with a rise in employment and profit margins, Basu remarked that the primary challenge facing the industry today is “not insufficient demand for construction services, but rather a lack of access to skilled craft professionals.”
By Garry Boulard
