Construction employment increased in 26 between July and August and in 35 states for the year, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of Labor Department data.
Association officials said, however, that construction employment remains below peak levels in most states. Stephen E. Sandherr, the association’s CEO, said it will take a lot more growth in most places to return construction employment to pre-recession levels.
South Dakota had the largest one-month percentage gain in August (6.7 percent, 1,300 jobs), followed by Vermont (3.7 percent, 500 jobs), Wisconsin (3.6 percent, 3,300 jobs) and Connecticut (3 percent, 1,600 jobs). Oklahoma had the steepest percentage drop in construction employment (down 4.2 percent or 3,000 jobs), followed by Hawaii (down 3.6 percent or 1,200 jobs), Nebraska (down 2.7 percent or1,200 jobs) and Utah (down 2.6 percent or 1,900 jobs).
California added the most construction jobs for the year (29,100 jobs, 5 percent), followed by Texas (24,200 jobs, 4.1 percent), Florida (19,500 jobs, 5.7 percent) and Louisiana (10,600 jobs, 8.4 percent). Fourteen states and the District of Columbia lost construction jobs between August 2012 and August 2013, while construction employment levels remained unchanged for the year in Vermont. Indiana lost the most jobs over the past year and experienced the steepest rate of decline (down 10,100 jobs or 8.1 percent). Other states experiencing large job losses for the year include Ohio, North Carolina and Alabama.
Association officials said that much of the industry’s recent growth was coming from a few private sector areas, particularly demand for new housing and energy facilities. Those gains have been strong enough to offset declining public sector investments and weak private sector demand in areas like retail construction. As a result, officails said many construction employers would be particularly hard hit by a sudden halt in federal construction activity.
