According to data released today by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics:
- The construction industry added 13,000 jobs on net in March. Year-over-year, industry employment has risen by 143,000 jobs, an increase of 1.8%.
- Nonresidential construction employment increased by 22,300 positions on net, with growth in 2 of the 3 subcategories.
- "At first glance, this is a perfectly fine jobs report for the construction industry. The details, however, give cause for concern. With downward revisions to the January and February numbers, the industry added just 8,000 jobs per month during the first quarter of 2025. Construction employment is up just 1.8% since March 2024, the slowest year-over-year growth in four years."
Press Release from Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc (ABC)
ABC: March Construction Employment Up Just 1.8% Year Over Year
WASHINGTON, April 4 —The construction industry added 13,000 jobs on net in March, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. On a year-over-year basis, industry employment has risen by a mere 143,000 jobs, an increase of 1.8%.
Nonresidential construction employment increased by 22,300 positions on net in March, with growth in 2 of the 3 subsegments. Nonresidential specialty trade added the most jobs, with a monthly increase of 19,300 positions, while heavy and civil engineering added 3,400 jobs. The nonresidential building subsegment lost 400 positions.
The construction unemployment rate decreased to 5.4% in March and is unchanged from one year ago. Unemployment across all industries rose from 4.1% in February to 4.2% last month.
“At first glance, this is a perfectly fine jobs report for the construction industry,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “The details, however, give cause for concern. With downward revisions to the January and February numbers, the industry added just 8,000 jobs per month during the first quarter of 2025. Construction employment is up just 1.8% since March 2024, the slowest year-over-year growth in four years.
“March’s labor market data is a lesser concern in light of the sweeping tariffs announced on April 2,” said Basu. “What amounts to the largest tax hike since 1968 will reduce construction activity due to rising input costs, shaken business confidence and potentially higher-for-longer interest rates. While contractors were sanguine about the outlook as of last month, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, industry expectations are likely to worsen in the coming months.”
Press Release from Associated General Contractors of America (AGC)
Industry Adds Jobs at Faster Rate than Overall Economy as Average Hourly Wages Outpace Rise in Private Sector Earnings; Construction Unemployment Rate of 5.4 Percent Matches Year-Ago Level
Construction sector employment increased by 13,000 positions in March as rising wages enabled the industry to add workers more rapidly than other sectors, according to an analysis of new government data the Associated General Contractors of America released today. Association officials cautioned that newly announced tariffs and potential retaliatory measures from U.S. trading partners have the potential to undermine future employment growth in the sector.
“Contractors added employees at a faster clip than other sectors in March, as pay for construction craft workers outpaced wages for production workers in the overall private sector,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “However, as steep new tariffs and foreign countries’ retaliatory measures take effect, building costs will rise and projects will be put on hold, posing a threat to employment.”
Construction employment in March totaled 8,313,000, seasonally adjusted, an increase of 13,000 from February. Headcount rose by 143,000 jobs or 1.8 percent during the past 12 months, topping the 1.2 percent growth rate in total nonfarm payroll employment.
In March, nonresidential construction firms added 22,300 workers, with gains of 19,300 among specialty trade contractors and 3,400 in heavy and civil engineering construction firms, which offset a dip of 400 workers at nonresidential building construction firms. Residential construction employment declined by 9,800, as homebuilders and other residential building construction firms added 3,100 positions but residential specialty trade contractors shed 12,900 workers.
Average hourly earnings for production and nonsupervisory employees in construction—covering most onsite craft workers as well as many office workers—climbed by 4.1 percent over the year to $36.79. per hour. That gain exceeded the 3.9 percent rise in pay for such workers in the overall private sector.
The unemployment rate among workers with recent construction experience was 5.4 percent in March, unchanged from a year earlier. That suggests contractors are holding on to current employees, even though other recent data shows a slowdown in hiring, job openings, and project spending, Simonson noted.
Association officials welcomed the employment gains in March but noted that new tariffs on virtually every country announced on April 2 are likely to undermine demand for construction in the short-term as developers and public officials evaluate whether to proceed with planned projects amid rising materials prices and construction costs. Yet to be determined is whether those short-term impacts will be offset by longer-term increases in manufacturing construction, officials added.
“The construction sector grew at a steady clip in March, buoyed in large part by robust public-sector investments in construction activity,” said Jeffrey D. Shoaf, the association’s chief executive officer. “The real question is how the newly announced tariffs will impact the industry in the short and long-term.”
