The construction industry added 17,000 jobs on net in December, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors’ analysis of data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. On a year-over-year basis, industry employment has grown by 197,000 jobs, an increase of 2.5%.
Last month, nonresidential construction employment increased by 11,900 positions on net, with growth in two of the three subcategories. Nonresidential building added 8,100 positions, while nonresidential specialty trade added 4,300 jobs on net. Heavy and civil engineering lost 500 jobs.
The construction unemployment rate fell to 4.4% in December. Unemployment across all industries remained unchanged at 3.7% last month.
Visit abc.org/economics for the Construction Backlog Indicator and Construction Confidence Index, plus analysis of spending, employment, job openings and the Producer Price Index.