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ABC: Construction Job Openings Increase By 14,000 in June, Up 36% Year Over Year

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 15:42:37 GMT

The construction industry recorded 305,000 job openings on the last day of June, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. JOLTS defines a job opening as any unfilled position for which an employer is actively recruiting. Industry job openings increased by 14,000 last month and are up by 81,000 from the same time last year.

“Interpreting these data is often challenging,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “One could take these figures at face value and conclude that construction is thriving and driving demand for workers higher. Indeed, ABC’s Construction Confidence Indicator shows that the average contractor expects rising revenues and employment over the next six months.

“But June’s construction spending report indicates that overall residential and nonresidential construction spending continues to decline,” said Basu. “Accordingly, one might look for other explanations for rising construction job openings, including demographic considerations.

“Many contractors view a structural shortfall of skilled labor as their primary challenge because many highly experienced, productive workers are retiring,” said Basu. “It is conceivable that these workers are being replaced with less skilled and productive workers, thereby requiring a few workers to be replaced by many.

“Alternatively, the data may not be capturing all that transpires,” said Basu. “It may be that certain people who had been working in construction were doing so without proper documentation. At least some of these workers are no longer available at jobsites, inducing faster hiring and expanding job openings as contractors work to replace them.”

ABC: June Nonresidential Construction Spending Up on Strength of Data Centers

Mon, 10 Aug 2026 15:38:27 GMT

National nonresidential construction spending rose 0.1% in June, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $1.277 trillion.

Spending was up on a monthly basis in 8 of 16 nonresidential subcategories. Both public and private nonresidential spending were up 0.1% in June. Private nonresidential construction spending was down nearly 5% from a year ago.

“Through April 2025, private nonresidential construction spending ascended to $806.1 billion on a seasonally adjusted annual rate basis, an all-time high,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Since then, that figure has expanded only three times over the past 14 months.

“Despite an ongoing data center construction boom, private nonresidential construction spending has declined to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $745.3 billion since the April 2025 peak, which translates into a decline exceeding 7%,” said Basu. “Tellingly, private nonresidential construction spending excluding data centers fell 0.6% in June 2026 and is down 7.9% year over year.

“Meanwhile, data center construction was up 7% in June and up 46% from a year ago. Contractors working on data centers continue to benefit from this momentum. According to ABC’s latest Construction Backlog Indicator, the 13% of ABC members under contract to work on data centers have significantly higher backlog (11.0 months) than the 87% that are not (8.5 months).”

Governor’s Data Center Construction Framework Would Shut Out ABC Members

Mon, 27 Jul 2026 15:14:31 GMT

By Luiza Mills, Interstate Electrical Services Corporation

Meta Platforms Inc. and Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc., our chapter’s national parent organization, recently announced a partnership to educate and provide construction-ready career pathways for thousands of data center construction technicians as a meaningful step toward meeting the growing demand for data centers workers. Unfortunately, the Healey/Driscoll administration’s subsequent framework for data center construction in Massachusetts, which includes a provision promoting project labor agreements, will effectively shut our member firms out of the process due to the PLA’s union labor requirement and, more broadly, is a disincentive to private development in the Commonwealth.

America’s Workforce Academy is a $115 million investment in the next generation of construction professionals that includes a five-week training program and a job offer from contractors working on Meta projects at the conclusion of the program. It creates another pathway into the construction industry and can serve as a precursor to a formal open shop or union apprenticeship program.

“America’s Workforce Academy is a transformational endeavor creating incredible careers in construction. ABC is proud to work with Meta, CBRE and academy community partners to welcome all who want to build their career dreams as construction professionals,” said Michael Bellaman, ABC president and CEO. “ABC believes in creating opportunities for all on a level playing field and is ready to meet the industry’s needs and help individuals achieve their career dreams. ABC is honored to partner with Meta to expand the pipeline of data center construction workers.

The American Workforce Academy partnership will:

Build a Sustainable Talent Pipeline: establishes scalable, repeatable workforce development models that align industry, training providers and workforce systems to meet ongoing demand.
Deliver Accelerated, Job-Ready Training: provides standardized, industry-aligned training that equips participants with the skills, safety knowledge and jobsite readiness needed to contribute quickly and effectively.
Ensure Safety and Productivity from Day One: prepares participants to meet industry and project-specific safety standards and contribute productively on the jobsite from the outset.

But excitement about the partnership was quickly dashed when the Healey/Driscoll administration made PLAs a condition for receiving state tax incentives for data center projects. With the PLA, the Commonwealth is effectively telling businesses that if they want to build in Massachusetts, they don’t have the option of using ABC members on their privately funded projects. The benefit from tax incentives will also be offset by the additional cost of building with a PLA.

Meanwhile, other states are aggressively supporting data centers and not imposing burdensome construction requirements. The imposition of PLAs on private development will only exacerbate the challenges we face in attracting businesses to the Commonwealth. Meta is just one example of the scores of national corporations that have established relationships with ABC members and other open shop contractors across the country.

As Bellaman said, “The sustained demand for data center construction technicians means the industry needs an all-of-the-above approach to address this shortage and grow the construction talent pool.”

We hope the Healey/Driscoll administration will consider these points and reconsider its framework for data center construction in Massachusetts.

ABC: Construction Materials Costs Fall with Oil Prices in June

Tue, 21 Jul 2026 12:57:58 GMT

Construction input prices decreased 1.1% in June compared to the previous month, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Producer Price Index data. Nonresidential construction input prices also decreased 1.1% for the month.

Overall construction input prices are 7.6% higher than one year ago, while nonresidential construction input prices are 7.4% higher. Prices decreased in 2 of the 3 energy subcategories last month. Crude petroleum prices declined 12.1%, and unprocessed energy materials fell 8.1%. Natural gas prices were up 16.6% in June.

“Aggregate construction input prices receded in June due to the steep decline in oil prices that occurred throughout the month,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Despite that decline, however, ongoing materials price escalation is likely over the coming months. The conflict in Iran has resumed, triggering a roughly 15% rebound in oil prices, and tariff-affected commodities like iron, steel and copper continue to experience steep price increases.

“While contractors remain optimistic about their margins, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, higher input costs will likely weigh on profitability during the second half of 2026," said Basu.

ABC: Construction Job Openings Rise to 10-Month High in May, Hiring Remains Historically Slow

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 16:20:52 GMT

The construction industry had 298,000 job openings on the last day of May, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. JOLTS defines a job opening as any unfilled position for which an employer is actively recruiting. Industry job openings increased by 32,000 last month and are up by 76,000 from the same time last year.

“Construction job openings rose to a 10-month high in May,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Unfortunately, that increase likely reflects exceptional demand for certain occupations critical to data center buildouts, like electricians, rather than increased industrywide demand for labor.

“The construction hiring rate fell sharply in May and, at 3.5%, matches February’s all-time low," said Basu. "Rising layoff activity and a falling quit rate also suggest that demand for construction labor weakened in May. Despite these signs, contractors remain optimistic about growing their staffing levels, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index.”

ABC: Private Nonresidential Construction Spending Slides Again in May

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 16:17:28 GMT

National nonresidential construction spending slid 1.5% in May, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $1.267 trillion.

Spending was up on a monthly basis in 11 of the 16 nonresidential subcategories. Private nonresidential spending was down 0.3%, while public nonresidential construction spending was up 0.4% in May.

“Private nonresidential construction spending shrank for the seventh consecutive month in May and is now down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “This weakness is largely due to the ongoing decline in manufacturing-related construction spending as CHIPS Act-supported projects wind down, yet overall there are few sources of momentum in the segment.

“Yes, the amusement and recreation category continues to grow at a healthy pace, and the religious category has rebounded meaningfully over the past year,” said Basu. “But those modestly sized segments are far too small to carry the broader nonresidential market, especially given the weakness in larger categories. For instance, warehouse construction spending, which appeared to stabilize at the start of 2026, has now fallen for three consecutive months and is down 8.5% year over year, while the general office category remains in a state of freefall, down 11.9% since May 2025.

“For now, momentum remains largely concentrated in the data center segment,” said Basu. “As seen in ABC’s most recent Construction Backlog Indicator release, those fortunate enough to have data center work have significantly longer backlogs (11.6 months) than those that do not (8.6 months).”

ABC: Nonresidential Construction Retains Hiring Momentum in June Jobs Report

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 15:00:11 GMT

The construction industry added 11,000 jobs on net in June, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. On a year-over-year basis, industry employment has expanded by 64,000 jobs, an increase of 0.8%.

Nonresidential construction employment increased by 19,900 positions, with gains in all three subcategories. Nonresidential specialty traded added the most jobs, increasing by 14,100 net positions. Nonresidential building and heavy and civil engineering added 3,200 and 2,600 jobs, respectively, in June.

The construction unemployment rate was 4.7% in June. Unemployment across all industries dropped to 4.2% and is 0.1 percentage point higher than one year ago.

“Today’s jobs report was full of positive signs for the nonresidential side of the industry,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “The nonresidential segment continued to add jobs in June and has grown several times faster than the economywide average over the past 12 months.

“At the same time, the supply of labor appears adequate to fuel ongoing hiring,” said Basu. “The industry’s unemployment rate rose to 4.7%, higher than in any June since 2021, and that slack took some pressure off of wage escalation. Average hourly earnings for nonmanagerial construction workers rose at the slowest pace since last September. With ABC contractors signaling ongoing hiring intentions, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, it appears likely that the industry will continue to expand its employment base over the coming months.”

GSA Issues New Guidance on Implementation of Costly and Anti-Competitive PLA Mandate

Mon, 29 Jun 2026 14:01:32 GMT

On June 18, the General Services Administration published significant new procedures for procurements subject to the project labor agreement mandate on large-scale federal construction projects valued at over $35 million through a new Acquisition Letter and PLA Playbook.

The documents explain that moving forward, the agency is utilizing a ‘paired-proposal’ procedure where contractors are still required to submit a bid that includes a PLA, but can optionally also submit a non-PLA bid.

The guidance states that GSA will then compare the PLA and non-PLA prices. However, the PLA bid price is evaluated as if it is 10% lower than its true price (up to $15 million) to reflect the premium that GSA deems reasonable for a PLA.

If the non-PLA price is lower even after the PLA bid is reduced in price, GSA will consider that contractor's non-PLA bid. If the non-PLA bid wins the award, GSA will obtain a PLA mandate exception for that project.

As of now, this guidance appears to only apply to GSA contracts, representing a relatively small percentage of large-scale federal construction.

ABC is still analyzing the impacts of this change. Despite the indication of potential exceptions, the guidance still appears to favor the use of PLA mandates on GSA contracts.

ABC continues to strongly oppose the illegal, discriminatory and inflationary federal PLA mandate through ongoing litigation and advocacy.

ABC’s Construction Backlog Surges in May, Contractor Confidence Slips

Mon, 22 Jun 2026 16:39:49 GMT

Associated Builders and Contractors reported that its Construction Backlog Indicator rose to 9.1 months in May, according to an ABC member survey conducted May 20 to June 3. The reading is up 0.3 months from April and 0.7 months from May 2025.

View the full Construction Backlog Indicator and Construction Confidence Index data series.

Backlog for the month increased in every region except for the South. Despite the monthly movement, the South remains the region with the longest backlog and the largest year-over-year increase in backlog.

ABC’s Construction Confidence Index readings for sales, profit margins and staffing levels fell in May. The readings for all three components remain above the threshold of 50, indicating expectations for growth over the next six months.

“Backlog rose to a nearly three-year high in May,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “This increase largely reflects the massive data center investments taking place across the nation, as the 14% of ABC members under contract to work on data centers continue to have much higher backlog (11.6 months) than those that are not (8.6 months). The way this boom is disproportionately benefiting larger contractors helps to explain why contractor confidence slipped in May even as backlog continued to climb.”

Cummings grant to Gould Construction Institute will create pathway to trade careers

Mon, 22 Jun 2026 16:35:07 GMT

By Luiza Mills, 2026 ABC Massachusetts chair, Interstate Electrical Services Corporation

June got off to a very good start for ABC Massachusetts when our Gould Construction Institute (GCI) was awarded a $225,000 grant over three years from the Cummings Foundation to create a “High School-to-Career Pathways in the Skilled Trades” pilot program, which will target 25-30 students per year in six Middlesex County high schools.

GCI, in partnership with Building Mass Careers (BMC) and Franklin Cummings Tech, seeks to address the accelerating construction labor shortage while creating a direct, sustainable pipeline from high school into high-demand skilled trade careers. This team continues to work tirelessly to provide pathways for those looking to get into the trades and enrich their futures.

The construction industry is facing an unprecedented workforce crisis. Nationally, the sector had to attract more than 439,000 new workers in 2025, with that number projected to reach nearly 499,000 in 2026, just to meet growing demand. At the same time, one in five construction workers is now 55 or older, and increased immigration enforcement pressures have further reduced the available labor pool.

The impacts that are being felt acutely across Massachusetts, where construction employment represents only 5.3 percent of the workforce, one of the lowest shares nationally, even as demand continues to grow, leading to project disruptions and higher costs.

In response, this initiative will establish a structured regional talent pipeline through formal partnerships with Bedford, Billerica, Burlington, Chelmsford, Dracut, and Lowell High Schools. Each year, the program will recruit and enroll five to six graduating seniors per school into one of two career pathways: GCI's registered apprenticeship trade programs or Franklin Cummings Tech's college-level Electrical and HVAC courses. All participants earn apprenticeship-eligible training credits, accelerating entry into paid employment.

The program will measure its success using indicators such as student recruitment levels, enrollment numbers, completion rates and post-program employment placements.

An investment in this initiative is an investment in economic stability, workforce readiness, safety and community prosperity. By building the next generation of skilled construction professionals, this program will strengthen Massachusetts' ability to deliver housing, infrastructure, and clean energy projects for decades to come, and will open the doors of opportunity for our future industry leaders.

A huge thank you to the Cummings Foundation for the grant and the confidence it has expressed in GCI!

ABC: Construction Materials Prices Surge 2.6% in May, Up Nearly 10% Year Over Year

Mon, 15 Jun 2026 19:08:05 GMT

Construction input prices increased 2.6% in May compared to the previous month, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index data. Nonresidential construction input prices increased 2.4% for the month.

Overall construction materials prices are 9.6% higher than one year ago, while nonresidential construction input prices are 9.7% higher. Prices increased in 2 of the 3 energy subcategories last month. Crude petroleum prices increased 11.8% and unprocessed energy materials increased 6.9%. Natural gas prices were down 18.2% in May.

“Construction input prices surged again in May and are now up nearly 10% year over year,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Oil prices, pushed higher by the ongoing Iran conflict, made a significant contribution to the rise in overall materials prices, yet the greater concern is the continuing price growth in tariff-affected inputs like iron, steel and copper. Contractors remain optimistic that their profit margins will expand over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, yet it appears likely that materials price escalation and stubbornly high borrowing costs could eventually weigh on profitability.”

Contractor’s Bad Faith Case Against Awarding Authority Nets Muti-Million Dollar Verdict

Mon, 15 Jun 2026 19:04:32 GMT

By Michael Sams, Partner at Bowditch

The Massachusetts Appeals Court has affirmed judgment against a public awarding authority for acting in bad faith in refusing to award Revoli Construction a large public works contract. In Revoli, after a Superior Court trial, the Appeals Court affirmed Revoli’s jury verdict against the awarding authority for its bad faith refusal to award Revoli a public works project. The jury awarded, and the Appeals Court affirmed, Revoli’s $3 million dollar lost profit award, which, with interest, totaled $5.2 million at the time of award and now totals well over $6 million dollars. Revoli established at trial that it was the lowest responsible bidder and that the awarding authority acted in bad faith by rejecting its bid. Specifically, Revoli established that the awarding authority predetermined to reject Revoli before conducting any review of Revoli’s responsibility and by then seemingly rigging the review process against Revoli. There are few cases on bad faith in the public construction/public works contract award process and this case provides insight both on what bad faith means and how to win these cases.

As such, the Revoli decision is important for the public construction (including public works) industry. In the public contract awards process, favorites cannot be chosen. Bias is not allowed. Outcomes cannot be predetermined. Responsible bidders cannot be blacklisted. The playing field must be kept level. Low, responsible bidders must be awarded the contract. This decision affirms that when bad faith occurs, the contractor receives its lost profits, even though it did not actually perform.

In what often seems to be a judicial or agency related review process that weighs the review of awarding authority conduct greatly in the awarding authority’s favor, this is a reminder that bad faith exists in that process at times and that these cases can be won. Indeed, to assure the integrity of the public construction bidding processes, contractors should pick their battles wisely, but pursue cases where bad faith can be proven.

The following from the Appeals court is instructive on the issue of bad faith:

Bad faith is a 'general and somewhat indefinite term' that goes beyond 'bad judgment' or 'negligence,' suggesting 'a dishonest purpose or some moral obliquity,' a 'conscious doing of wrong,' or a 'breach of a known duty through some motive of interest or ill will.'" Buffalo-Water 1, LLC v. Fidelity Real Estate Co., LLC, 481 Mass. 13, 25-26 (2018), quoting Spiegel v. Beacon Participations, Inc., 297 Mass. 398, 416 (1937). "In the context of State action, [bad faith] includes the use of an otherwise lawful power for an improper purpose." Judge Rotenberg Educ. Ctr., Inc. v. Commissioner of the Dep't of Developmental Servs., 492 Mass. 772, 790 (2023). See Pheasant Ridge Assocs. Ltd. Partnership v. Burlington, 399 Mass. 771, 777-780 4915-3777-2971.1 (1987) (taking of land for public park pursuant to town meeting vote was invalid where manifest purpose behind taking was to block low or moderate income housing); Northeast Reclamation Corp. v. Wareham, 54 Mass. App. Ct. 564, 566 (2002) (jury's finding of bad faith supported by evidence of "town's pretextual rejection of the plaintiff's bid because of threats of litigation made by an ineligible bidder").

In the Revoli case, the evidence established for the jury that the awarding authority never had worked with Revoli yet decided before any review that it did not want Revoli on the project. It then seemingly rigged the review process to create a façade of propriety, but intended to meet the predetermined end result that Revoli was not responsible.

At the heart of what seemed to drive the awarding authority and its engineer in this direction was Revoli’s willingness on prior non-awarding authority projects to stand up for itself; namely, it’s history of pursuing its change order rights on prior public works projects (indeed, the awarding authority even cited Revoli as litigious early on in court pleadings). The awarding authority and its third-party engineer then concocted evaluations to be completed by awarding authorities on prior projects that were intended to reveal Revoli’s history of pursuing change order claims as a negative.

Revoli countered that it had a contractual, statutory and even constitutional right (to petition the government) to seek change orders and established that its change order history on the projects the awarding authority cited were not only in good faith but resulted in payments to Revoli approaching $2 million dollars. Moreover, the awarding authority was forced to admit that the pursuit of change orders alone is not bad faith, that one had to know about the substance of the change order requests to assess the good faith nature of them and that at the time it assessed Revoli as litigious, the awarding authority had no idea about the nature of Revoli’s change order history or that it had recovered close to $2 million on these claims.

Revoli established other pretextual issues the awarding authority created, as well. It demonstrated that although the awarding authority purported to be concerned about safety as a basis for rejecting Revoli, the bidder to whom it awarded the contract had a documented history of OSHA safety issues approximately ten times higher than Revoli’s. Revoli also demonstrated that the awarding authority ignored all of the positive reviews submitted by awarding authorities that previously worked with Revoli and that even seemingly positive reviews the awarding authority did not ignore, were treated negatively. The evidence also demonstrated that awarding authority personnel had not disclosed much of this to the City Manager at the time he approved Revoli’s rejection and award to the second low bidder.

Contractors cannot give up the fight. Awarding authorities are not benign boxes. They are institutions of people who, like anyone else, are constituted with pride and prejudice and who therefore, for any number of reasons, may act in bad faith. Certainly, that is not always the case but if contractors do not fight to maintain the level playing field in those instances where bad faith occurs, the lessons of the Ward Commission will be lost, along with the level playing field.

Meta, ABC Form Partnership to Launch Academy to Train and Create Jobs for Construction Craft Professionals

Mon, 15 Jun 2026 19:02:55 GMT

Meta Platforms Inc. and Associated Builders and Contractors have announced a partnership to educate and provide construction-ready career pathways for thousands of data center construction technicians kicking off in Indiana, Louisiana, Ohio and Texas as a meaningful step toward meeting the growing demand for data centers workers nationwide.

America’s Workforce Academy is a $115 million investment in the next generation of construction professionals that includes a five-week training program and a job offer from contractors working on Meta projects at the conclusion of the program. It creates another pathway into the construction industry that is an alternative to union apprenticeship programs.

Once an online application process is complete, scholarships, travel, housing and stipends for living expenses are granted to qualified job seekers. They will then participate in career readiness and safety training followed by five weeks of hands-on education, which includes core training and craft training.

“America’s Workforce Academy is a transformational endeavor creating incredible construction-ready careers. ABC is proud to work with Meta, CBRE and academy community partners to welcome all who want to build their career dreams as a professional in construction,” said Michael Bellaman, ABC president and CEO. “As an industry leader, ABC believes in creating opportunities for all on a level playing field and is ready to meet the industry’s needs and help individuals achieve their career dreams. ABC is honored to partner with Meta to expand the pipeline of data center construction workers.

“This new program is an innovative talent solution that is a critical part of addressing the construction industry’s ongoing workforce shortage and creates an accelerated, new-entrant strategy for job seekers,” said Bellaman. “Utilizing ABC’s existing, proven, nationwide educational ecosystem, these programs will be launched at ABC chapter training centers in key markets like Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Columbus, Ohio; Indianapolis and Houston. This new, national partnership will help train the next generation of craft professionals from entry points such as high school graduates, veterans and more.”

“The AI revolution is bringing change but also historic opportunities,” said Meta President and Vice-Chairman Dina Powell McCormick. “Skilled workers electrified rural America one pole at a time. They manned the factories that built the arsenal that won World War II. Now a new generation will pour the foundations and lay the fiber that secures American strength in this new age.”

The American Workforce Academy partnership will:

Build a Sustainable Talent Pipeline: establishes scalable, repeatable workforce development models that align industry, training providers and workforce systems to meet ongoing demand.
Deliver Accelerated, Job-Ready Training: provides standardized, industry-aligned training that equips participants with the skills, safety knowledge and jobsite readiness needed to contribute quickly and effectively.
Ensure Safety and Productivity From Day One: prepares participants to meet industry and project-specific safety standards and contribute productively on the jobsite from the outset.

“The sustained demand for data center construction technicians means the industry needs an all-of-the-above approach to address this shortage and grow the construction talent pool,” said Bellaman. “This important new partnership reaffirms that the construction industry offers careers of choice in today's complex job market. These new entrants may be beginning their careers on data center projects but by learning multiple competencies, are starting a life-long career in construction with near limitless possibilities.”

ABC member contractors are building the people who build America’s critical infrastructure by investing in flexible, competency-based and market-driven education methodologies to cultivate their long-term skill sets, creating a brighter future for their workers and their families. They deliver long-lasting projects and employ multicraft professionals who go home safe, healthy and fulfilled every day. ABC and its members are working to recruit, educate and upskill the nation’s future construction workforce with a network of more than 800 apprenticeship, craft, safety and management education programs—including 450 government-registered apprenticeship programs—across 20 different occupations.

“Thanks to the crucial, established team members of ABC’s vast network, which includes the National Center for Construction Education and Research, ABC’s 67 chapters, ABC strategic partners and ABC business partners, as well as ABC’s Tech Alliance, we are ready to deliver this transformational construction career readiness program across the country,” said Bellaman.

If you want to help build America’s future, apply to America’s Workforce Academy today.

ABC: Nonresidential Construction Spending Grows on Public Sector Strength in April

Mon, 08 Jun 2026 15:26:23 GMT

National nonresidential construction spending increased 0.1% in April, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $1.250 trillion.

Spending was up on a monthly basis in 10 of the 16 nonresidential subcategories. Private nonresidential spending was down 0.2%, while public nonresidential construction spending was up 0.4% in April.

Spending on data centers, which is included in the office category, increased another 1.9% in April, rising to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $50.7 billion, and is up 28.1% over the past year.

“Nonresidential construction spending inched higher in April, but that growth was entirely due to a sizable increase in public sector activity,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Private nonresidential construction spending fell for the seventh consecutive month and is down nearly 8% from December 2023’s all-time high. While much of the segment’s recent weakness is attributable to the rapid decline in CHIPS Act-incentivized manufacturing megaprojects, private sector construction momentum has been difficult to find outside of the still-ascendant data center segment.

“Those data center projects have buoyed the ABC Construction Backlog Indicator and kept ABC members confident about their outlooks, at least on the whole,” said Basu. “While that particular tailwind will persist for some time, rising materials prices and a lack of momentum in many commercial segments may eventually weigh on contractor sentiment.”

ABC: Nonresidential Construction Adds Healthy 15,700 Jobs in May

Mon, 08 Jun 2026 15:23:18 GMT

The construction industry added 17,000 jobs on net in May, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. On a year-over-year basis, industry employment has increased by 68,000 jobs, up 0.8%.

Nonresidential construction employment increased by 15,700 positions, with gains in all three subcategories. Nonresidential specialty traded added the most jobs, increasing by 11,400 positions. Heavy and civil engineering and nonresidential building added 2,600 and 1,700 jobs, respectively, in May.

The construction unemployment rate was 4.1% in May. Unemployment across all industries remained unchanged at 4.3% and is also unchanged from a year ago.

“The construction industry posted healthy job gains in May, especially within the nonresidential segment,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “The industry’s recent job growth, driven by insatiable demand for data centers and ongoing growth in publicly funded construction activity, appears set to continue over the coming months. Contractors also remain broadly optimistic about growing their staffing levels over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index.

“The bigger story in the May jobs report, however, is the surprising strength of the broader labor market,” said Basu. “Economywide job growth has accelerated, rising to a pace not seen since the early months of 2024, and the unemployment rate held steady at a perfectly acceptable 4.3% in May. This is an indication of broader economic resilience, albeit one that is not necessarily encouraging for the construction industry.

“The combination of a stable labor market and resurgent inflation suggests that rate hikes are now more likely than rate cuts over the next several quarters, and high borrowing costs and tight lending standards will continue to weigh on construction activity during the months ahead,” said Basu.

ABC: All But 6 States Had Construction Unemployment Rates Below 10% in March

Tue, 26 May 2026 12:22:11 GMT

The national March not seasonally adjusted construction unemployment rate was 6.7%, a 1.3% increase from March 2025, according to a state-by-state analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data released by Associated Builders and Contractors. The analysis found that only two states—Louisiana and Ohio—had lower estimated construction unemployment rates over the same period, four had the same rate and 44 had higher rates.

National NSA payroll construction employment was 58,000 higher than March 2025, its 12th straight month of year-over-year increases below 100,000. Seasonally adjusted payroll construction employment was 8.3 million, or 9.3% above its pre-pandemic peak of 7.6 million.

Estimated state construction unemployment rates were lower than their pre-pandemic (February 2020) level in 20 states. As of March 2026, 19 states had lower construction unemployment rates compared to March 2019, and 31 states had higher rates.

“The Iran war and resulting hike in energy prices are negatively affecting the construction industry, which was already struggling with insurance premium increases, escalating labor costs, shortages of skilled labor and elevated interest rates,” said Bernard Markstein, president and chief economist of Markstein Advisors, who conducted the analysis for ABC. “Consequently, some projects have been scaled back, put on hold or abandoned altogether. With slower construction activity, demand for construction workers is growing more slowly.”

Recent Month-to-Month Fluctuations

In March, the national NSA construction unemployment rate declined 0.2% from February. Among the states, 28 had lower rates, 20 states came in with higher rates and two states (Kansas and Maine) had the same estimated construction unemployment rates as in February.

The Top States

The seven states with the lowest-estimated NSA construction unemployment rates for March were:

Oklahoma, 2.8%
South Dakota, 2.9%
Tennessee, 3.4%
New Hampshire, 3.5%
Colorado, Hawaii and North Carolina (tie), 4.1%

South Dakota had its second-lowest March NSA estimated construction unemployment rate on record at 2.9%, behind last year’s 2.7% rate. Note that Hawaii’s unemployment rate is for construction plus mining and logging.

The Bottom States

The five states with the highest NSA construction unemployment rates in March were:

New Mexico, 11.7%
New Jersey, 12.9%
Minnesota, 13.2%
Connecticut, 14.8%
Rhode Island, 16.2%

Rhode Island had the largest decline in its rate from February among the states, down 3.4%. Connecticut had the third-largest monthly decline, down 2.7%.

ABC Contractor Backlog and Confidence Rise Again in April, Buoyed by Data Centers

Mon, 18 May 2026 17:58:40 GMT

Associated Builders and Contractors reported today that its Construction Backlog Indicator rose to 8.8 months in April, according to an ABC member survey conducted from April 20 to May 4. The reading is up 0.2 months from March and up 0.1 months from April 2025.

View the full Construction Backlog Indicator and Construction Confidence Index data series.

Backlog surged for contractors with greater than $100 million in annual revenues and is now 2.2 months higher than during April 2025. All other contractor size categories have smaller backlog than they did one year ago.

ABC’s Construction Confidence Index readings for sales, profit margins and staffing levels also increased in April. The readings for all three components are higher than they were one year ago and remain above the threshold of 50, indicating expectations for growth over the next six months.

“While backlog surged to a 10-month high in April, the industry’s recent momentum is highly concentrated among a subset of contractors,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Booming data center construction has almost exclusively benefited the largest ABC members; 42% of contractors with more than $100 million in annual revenues are under contract to work on data center projects. The same is true for just 7% of contractors with less than $100 million in annual revenues. Critically, contractors under contract to work on data centers have significantly longer backlog (12.2 months) than those that are not (8.3 months).

“Despite diverging levels of backlog, ABC contractor members of all sizes remain confident about the outlook,” said Basu. “Just 1 in 5 expect their profit margins to shrink over the next six months, the fewest since January 2025, and contractors are similarly upbeat about their sales and staffing levels. The upshot is that weak construction spending data, the recent rise in oil prices and emerging materials price escalation have not diminished ABC member confidence.”

Note: The reference months for the Construction Backlog Indicator and Construction Confidence Index data series were revised on May 12, 2020, to better reflect the survey period. CBI quantifies the previous month's work under contract based on the latest financials available, while CCI measures contractors' outlook for the next six months. View the methodology for both indicators.

ABC: Construction Materials Prices Soar in April, Up 6.2% Since January

Mon, 18 May 2026 17:53:44 GMT

Construction input prices increased 1.7% in April compared to the previous month, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Producer Price Index data. Nonresidential construction input prices increased 1.8% for the month.

Overall construction input prices are 7.0% higher than one year ago, while nonresidential construction input prices are 7.4% higher. Prices increased in all three energy subcategories last month. Crude petroleum prices increased 11.3%, while unprocessed energy materials and natural gas prices were up 9.2% and 4.9%, respectively, in April.

“Construction input prices surged again in April,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Input prices have now risen more during the first four months of 2026 (6.2%) than over the prior three years (4.8%). While much of the recent rise can be traced to soaring oil prices, escalation was widespread in April, with tariff-affected materials like iron and steel posting particularly large price increases.

“In addition to the direct impact of this reemerging materials price escalation, too-hot inflation data coupled with upbeat labor market indicators suggest that the Federal Reserve is unlikely to cut rates this year,” said Basu. “While contractors remain busy, according to ABC’s Construction Backlog Indicator, these cost pressures will likely weigh on construction activity over the coming months.”

Rent Control Isn’t the Answer to Our Housing Crisis

Mon, 18 May 2026 17:46:46 GMT

By Luiza Mills, Interstate Electrical Services Corporation

As you may know, Massachusetts voters will be weighing in on a number of ballot initiatives in November. Among them is a proposal to impose the nation’s strictest statewide rent control policy. I’d like to tell you why the ABC MA Board of Directors has voted to join Housing for Massachusetts, a coalition of small property owners, affordable housing developers, business and political leaders and housing advocates that oppose the proposal.

The state estimates that Massachusetts needs more than 220,000 additional housing units by 2035 to meet demand. The ballot initiative calls for limiting rent increases to the lower of 5% or the rate of increase in the consumer price index (CPI). Compare that to other states with rent control programs. California limits increases to the CPI plus five percentage points; in Washington and Oregon it’s CPI plus 10. Over the last 20 years, the average annual increase in the CPI has been 2.58%, but last year alone, property taxes rose by an average of 4.3% in Massachusetts.

This rent control policy would cause developers to shift their focus away from housing and many landlords would either take their units off the market or convert them to condos.

One of our ABC Board members summed up the impact succinctly. “This restrictive rent control proposal will put a stop to housing production and lead to a degradation in housing across Massachusetts.”

Policies that would actually bring down housing costs by increasing supply include promoting competition and avoiding union-only project labor agreements and rejecting attempts to extend prevailing wage to cover offsite work, such as was the case for the Clarendon Hill project in Somerville, where the state determined the modular units built offsite were subject to prevailing wages.

The number of people choosing to leave Massachusetts has risen sharply in recent years and studies show that the biggest reasons are taxes, the cost of health care and housing. A key factor in controlling housing costs is to increase supply. We join with Housing for Massachusetts in opposing the rent control ballot initiative because it would have the opposite effect.

ABC: Nonresidential Construction Adds Healthy 19,000 Jobs in April

Mon, 11 May 2026 18:01:59 GMT

The construction industry added 9,000 jobs on net in April, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. On a year-over-year basis, industry employment has expanded by 50,000 jobs, an increase of 0.6%.

Nonresidential construction employment increased by 19,000 positions, with gains in all three subcategories. Nonresidential specialty traded added the most jobs, increasing by 12,600 positions. Nonresidential building and heavy and civil engineering added 5,600 and 800 jobs, respectively, in April.

The construction unemployment rate was 3.8% in April. Unemployment across all industries remained unchanged at 4.3% and is 0.1 percentage point higher than it was a year ago.

“Construction employment expanded modestly in April, but that’s largely due to weakness on the residential side of the industry,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Nonresidential construction employment rose at a healthy pace for the month and is up a respectable 2.0% over the past year. This strength can be traced to surging data center construction spending, which is up 34% over the past year. It also helps explain why ABC member expectations for hiring remain elevated, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, despite tepid industrywide job growth.”