Seasonally adjusted construction employment fell from July to August in 29 states, rose in 19 states, and was flat Nebraska, Vermont, and the District of Columbia, according to AGC’s analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data posted today. Employment fell in 19 states year-over-year (y/y), increased in 28 states and D.C., and remained unchanged in North Dakota. Nevada lost the most construction jobs from July to August (-4,400 jobs or -4.1%), followed by New York (-3,800, 1.0%), Georgia (-3,000, 1.3%), and Massachusetts (-2,600, -1.5%). Nevada also lost the highest percentage for the month, followed by West Virginia (-1.9%, -700), Massachusetts, Montana (-1.3%, -500), and Georgia. Florida added the most construction jobs for the month (3,600 jobs or 0.5%), followed by Maryland (2,700, 1.7%) and Tennessee 2,000, 1.2%). The largest percentage gain occurred in Mississippi (3.1%, 1,600), followed by Rhode Island (2.2%, 500), and Maryland. California lost the most construction jobs during the past 12 months (-16,900, -1.9%), followed by New York (-13,300, -3.4%), Washington (-11,100, -4.9%), New Jersey (-10,000, 6.1%), and Nevada (-7,100, -6.4%). The largest percentage loss was in Nevada, followed by New Jersey, Washington, Louisiana (-3.7%, -5,200), and New York. Texas added the most construction (18,500 or 2.2%), followed by Ohio (13,600, 5.4%), Virginia (12,700, 5.8%), and North Carolina (8,000, 2.9%). New Mexico had the largest percentage gain over 12 months (13.3%, 7,200), followed by West Virginia (9.3%, 3,100), Alaska (8.8%, 1,600), and Idaho (6.8%, 4,900). (BLS reports combined mining, logging, and construction data for Hawaii, Maryland, and D.C.; AGC treats all jobs as construction.)
The value of construction starts, not seasonally adjusted, slipped 3.9% y/y in August but rose 5.9% year-to-date (YTD) in the first eight months of 2025 compared to January-August 2024, ConstructConnect reported on Thursday. Nonresidential building starts edged down 0.1% y/y but climbed 18% YTD, with commercial up 18% YTD, institutional down 3.4%, and industrial (manufacturing) up 76%. Engineering (civil) starts increase 8.2% y/y and 5.4% YTD, with roads up 6.5% YTD, water and sewage treatment up 5.5%, bridges up 16%, airports up 29%, and power infrastructure down 47%. Residential starts slumped 18.5% y/y and 8.8% YTD, with single-family down 9.5% YTD and multifamily down 7.6%.
Housing starts (units) in August slumped 8.5% for the month at a seasonally adjusted annual rate but rose 0.7% for the first eight months of 2025 YTD compared to January-August 2024, the Census Bureau reported on Wednesday. Single-family starts fell 7.0% for the month and 4.9% YTD. Multifamily (five or more units) starts skidded 11% from July but jumped 18% YTD. Residential permits fell 3.7% for the month and 5.0% YTD. Single-family permits slipped 2.2% from July and 5.0% YTD. Multifamily permits declined to the slowest pace since May 2024, down 6.7% from July and 1.0% YTD. The number of multifamily units under construction hit a four-year low.
Several manufacturing construction projects were announced this week but the net impact remains uncertain. “So far this year, more than a dozen drugmakers have pledged to spend more than $350 billion collectively by the end of this decade on manufacturing, research and development, and other functions in the U.S., a Wall Street Journal tally of company announcements showed,” the Journal reported on Wednesday. On Tuesday, GSK announced a “$30 billion U.S. investment in research and development and supply-chain infrastructure over the next five years. [Eli] Lilly said Tuesday it will build a $5 billion manufacturing plant west of Richmond, Va….Johnson & Johnson has committed to spending $55 billion over the next four years on manufacturing, research and technology in the U.S. AstraZeneca of the U.K. pledged to spend $50 billion by 2030 on new manufacturing and research capacity in the U.S. Some of the projects were in the works before this year…And some of the large investment amounts drugmakers have pledged include spending on nonmanufacturing endeavors such as drug research and routine capital spending.” Rivian Automotive broke ground on Tuesday on an electric-vehicle (EV) plant in Georgia that was originally announced in 2021 as costing $5 billion, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday. In contrast, “Stellantis last week canceled Ram’s electric truck program. Ford has delayed production at a new Tennessee plant. And General Motors abandoned plans to build electric vehicles at a suburban Detroit plant….Two separate EV makers that hoped to assemble vehicles in a former GM plant in Lordstown, Ohio, went bankrupt.” Food Dive reported on Monday, “Red Bull broke ground on a new $1.7 billion [manufacturing and distribution center in] North Carolina, following a four-year delay.”
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Editor: Ken.Simonson@agc.org, Chief Economist, AGC.
