Construction industry gains 10,000 jobs in October

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U.S. construction employment increased by 10,000 jobs in October and by 148,000 jobs during the past 12 months, an Associated General Contractors of America analysis of federal data found.

The 12-month number represented a 2% increase. Construction spending decreased by 2% from September 2018 to September 2019, according to the AGC.

The organization said demand for construction is being undermined by tariffs involving China, the European Union, and other countries.

“The construction industry is still adding workers at a faster clip than the overall economy, but growth has slowed as private nonresidential and multifamily construction spending shrinks,” Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist, said in a news release. “At the same time, public investment and a recent pickup in single-family homebuilding have helped employment to grow.”

Simonson said the 2% growth in construction employment between October 2018 and October 2019 was the slowest in almost seven years but noted the rate remained well above the 1.4% increase in total nonfarm payroll employment.

The AGC said average hourly earnings in construction — a measure of all wages and salaries — increased 2.4% over the year to $30.95, 9.8& higher than the private-sector average of $28.18.

Construction spending totaled $1.294 trillion at a seasonally adjusted annual rate in September, a gain of 0.5% from the August rate but 2% less than the September 2018 rate, according to estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau. Year-to-date spending for January through September fell 2.2% from the year-ago total.

“Resolving trade disputes and providing businesses with greater certainty about trade and tariff levels will help accelerate demand for new construction projects,” Stephen E. Sandherr, ACG CEO, said in the release.