State Level Analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics Nonfarm Construction Jobs Released for August 2022

A deeper dive into the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) nationwide total nonfarm payroll employment summary for August with a state-by-state overview and a focus on construction, and additional analysis provided by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), reveals that nonfarm payroll employment increased month-over-month in 37 states in August compared to the previous month, while 13 states and the District of Columbia lost jobs in August. Nationwide nonfarm payroll increased by 315,000 jobs in August, following a gain of 526,000 job in July.

Of note, in the 12 months ending in August, 5.8 million jobs have been recovered, marking a full recovery of labor market from the COVID-19 pandemic induced recession. All the states and District of Columbia added jobs compared to a year ago. The range of job gains spanned 726,900 jobs in Texas to 5,700 jobs added in Vermont. In percentage terms, Texas reported the highest increase, growing by 6.6%, while Mississippi increased the least: 1.0% compared to a year ago.

According to the analysis, across the 48 states which reported construction sector jobs data—which includes both residential as well as non-residential construction—30 states reported an increase in August compared to July, while 15 states lost construction sector jobs. Maryland, Maine, and Nevada reported no change. Arizona added 5,300 construction jobs, while Minnesota lost 1,900 jobs. Overall, the construction industry added a net 16,000 jobs in August compared to the previous month. In percentage terms, Arizona increased by 2.9%, while Wyoming reported a decline of 3.2% between July and August.

Year-over-year, construction sector jobs in the US increased by 311,000, which is a 4.2% increase compared to the August 2021 level. Texas added 50,000 jobs, which was the largest gain of any state, while Minnesota lost 1,800 construction sector jobs. In percentage terms, New Mexico had the highest annual growth rate in the construction sector by 14.2$. Over this period, Minnesota reported a decline of 1.4%.