Steel Markets
September 20, 2019
AGC: Construction Still Challenged by Worker Shortage
Written by Sandy Williams
A workforce shortage continues to impede gains in construction employment, says the Associated General Contractors of America. Thirty-nine states added construction jobs between August 2018 and August 2019, while construction employment increased in 29 states from July to August, according to AGC’s latest analysis of Labor Department data.
“Even more states probably would have posted gains in construction employment if firms could find enough people to hire,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “They are finding most craft positions hard to fill, even though average pay in construction is higher than the all-industry average in nearly every state.”
