AGC: Construction Employment Increases in 39 States between July 2023 and July 2024

Construction employment increased in 39 states in July from a year earlier, while 29 states and the District of Columbia added construction jobs between June and July, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials noted that demand for projects — and the workers to execute them — remains robust in most states but there is a pressing to prepare more people for careers in construction.

“Construction employment gains remain widespread, thanks to steady or increasing demand for data centers, manufacturing plants, energy and infrastructure projects,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “But further job growth may be hindered by a lack of training programs for construction careers.”

Between July 2023 and July 2024, 39 states added construction jobs, while 11 states and D.C. shed jobs. Florida added the most construction employees (36,700 jobs), followed by Texas (33,100 jobs), California (16,500 jobs), Michigan (14,100 jobs) and Nevada (13,300 jobs).

New York lost the most construction jobs during the past 12 months (-8,100 jobs), followed by Colorado (-4,200 jobs), Maryland (-4,000 jobs), Minnesota (-1,500) and Maine (-1,400 jobs).

For the month, industry employment increased in 29 states and D.C., declined in 16 states and was unchanged in five states. Florida added the most jobs (6,300 jobs), followed by Tennessee (5,200 jobs), California (2,700 jobs) and Ohio (2,300 jobs).

New York lost the most construction jobs from June to July (-3,800 jobs), followed by New Jersey (-1,700 jobs), Missouri (-1,500 jobs) and Wisconsin (-1,000 jobs).

View July 2024 state employment data and 1-month and 12-month rankings.