Nearly two-thirds of 358 surveyed metro areas added construction jobs between October 2020 and October 2021, according to analysis of government data by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). The growth is slightly down from September, when nearly 80% of metros experienced construction employment growth on a year-over-year (YOY) basis. AGC officials said growth in October likely would have been more widespread without the current supply chain issues and labor shortages.
“While it is heartening that construction is recovering from the lows of 2020 in much of the country, the pandemic is still causing major supply chain related problems and is keeping some workers from seeking employment,” says AGC chief economist Ken Simonson. “Those impediments threaten to limit construction employment gains in many metros.”
Over the past 12 months, Sacramento-Roseville-Arden-Arcade, California; Boston-Cambridge-Newton, Massachusetts; Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida; and Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Washington, added the most construction jobs. Worcester, Massachusetts; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; and Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas, experienced the largest YOY percentage growth in construction employment during October 2021, according to the AGC.
Of the metro areas that experienced employment decreases from October 2020 to October 2021, several New York metros, including Nassau County-Suffolk County, New York City, and Orange-Rockland-Westchester, lost the most construction jobs in pure numbers. Evansville, Indiana-Kentucky; Altoona, Pennsylvania; and Watertown-Fort Drum, New York, experienced the largest percentage declines in industry employment between October 2020 and October 2021.
