Nonresidential construction recovers 56 percent of jobs lost since March

The construction industry added 158,000 jobs on net in June, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) analysis of data released July 2 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. During the last two months, the industry has added 591,000 jobs, recovering 56 percent of the industry-wide jobs lost since the start of the pandemic.

“Since the pandemic devastated the economy, most economists have been predicting a V-shaped recovery,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “To date, this has proven correct. While recovery is likely to become more erratic during the months ahead due to a number of factors, recent employment, unemployment, residential building permits and retail sales data all highlight the potential of the U.S. economy to experience a rapid rebound in economic activity as 2021 approaches.”

Nonresidential construction employment added 74,700 jobs on net in June. There was positive job growth in two of the three nonresidential segments, with the largest increase in nonresidential specialty trade contractors, which added 71,300 jobs. Employment in the nonresidential building segment increased by 13,100 jobs, while heavy and civil engineering lost 9,700 jobs.

The construction unemployment rate was 10.1 percent in June, up 6.1 percentage points from the same time last year but down from 12.7 percent in May and 16.6 percent in April. Unemployment across all industries dropped from 13.3 percent in May to 11.1 percent in June.

“After this initial period of recovery in U.S. nonresidential construction, there are likely to be periods of slower growth or even contraction,” said Basu. “Nonresidential construction activity tends to lag the broader economy by 12-18 months, and this suggests that there will be some shaky industry performance in 2021 and perhaps beyond.”