Rapidly rising hourly earnings enabled the construction industry to add 36,000 employees in May, but a record number of job openings going into the month suggests contractors want to hire even more workers, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of new government data. Association officials said firms would have hired even more workers if they could find more people willing to work in the sector.
“It is encouraging that contractors were able to add workers in May, but they will need many more to meet the increasing demand for infrastructure and private nonresidential projects,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “Despite steeply rising pay for hourly workers, job openings in construction hit an all-time high at the end of April, while the industry’s low unemployment rate suggests experienced workers are scarce.”
Read more.