Construction Employment In June Continues To Lag At Pre-Pandemic Levels In 18 States As Lack Of Qualified Workers Holds Down Hiring
New York Has Largest Shortfall Compared to February 2020 Peak, While Utah Tops List of States with Gains; California, Connecticut Have Worst Monthly Declines, While Pennsylvania, Oregon Lead Job Gainers in June
Construction employment in June continued to trail pre-pandemic levels in more than one-third of the states despite record job openings, according to a new analysis of federal employment data released today by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials called on government officials to allow employers to sponsor more foreign-born workers and support more career and technical education to broaden opportunities for workers to gain construction skills.
“Construction employment has stalled in many states, even though contractors have plenty of projects needing more employees, due to a dearth of qualified workers,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Only half the states had an increase in construction employment last month.”