The Daily Dig
The construction industry added 11,000 jobs on net in September, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Nonresidential work carried the month, and ABC points to the data center boom as a key driver.
September marked the seventh straight month of job gains for the industry. Over the past year, construction employment is up 109,000 jobs, or 1.3%.
Trade Winds
Nonresidential employment rose by 16,100 positions, with gains in all three subcategories. That's more than the industry's net total for the month, which tells you which side is doing the hiring.
Specialty trade contractors led the way with 12,300 new jobs. Heavy and civil engineering added 2,600, and nonresidential building added 1,200.
"Industry employment growth is increasingly concentrated on the nonresidential side as the data center boom continues to support rapid hiring of certain specialty trade contractors," said Anirban Basu, ABC's chief economist.
Home Alone
The residential segment is moving in the opposite direction. "At the same time, the residential segment continues to hemorrhage workers, and that side of the industry has now shed 1.0% of its employment base over the past year," Basu said.
The construction unemployment rate came in at 3.5% in September. Unemployment across all industries increased to 4.2%, though that's still 0.2 percentage points lower than a year ago.
Contractors aren't planning to slow down. ABC's Construction Confidence Index shows hiring expectations remain elevated, an outlook Basu said "seems justified given the insatiable demand for new data centers."
Snapshot:
Report: ABC analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data
Period Covered: September
Net Construction Jobs Added: 11,000
Year Over Year Change: +109,000 jobs (1.3%)
Consecutive Months of Gains: 7
Nonresidential Jobs Added: 16,100
Nonresidential Specialty Trade: +12,300
Heavy and Civil Engineering: +2,600
Nonresidential Building: +1,200
Residential Employment, Past Year: Down 1.0%
Construction Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
All Industry Unemployment Rate: 4.2% (0.2 percentage points lower than one year ago)
Growth Driver Cited: Data center construction
Hiring Outlook: Elevated, per ABC's Construction Confidence Index
Source Quoted: Anirban Basu, Chief Economist, ABC
TheJobWalk Thoughts
Data centers don't just eat power, they eat crews, and those builds lean hard on electrical and mechanical trades. If your next project isn't a data center, you're likely competing with one for the same subs. Lock in key trade partners early, and build that demand into your pricing assumptions.
Residential's loss could be a nonresidential sub's gain. Some of those departing workers already know their way around a jobsite, though the skills rarely transfer one for one. Subs willing to invest in training may find a recruiting pipeline worth building.
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