According to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of the new U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2025 Union Members Summary/, 11.1% of U.S. construction industry workers belong to a union, an increase from 10.3% in 2024, versus 88.9% who do not.

One phrase that many of you have heard from your fellow members and ABC MA staff is “More members, more clout.”  Every voice matters, and that’s especially true in a state like Massachusetts. The open shop accounts for 82.7 percent of the construction workforce, yet our voice is not proportionately reflected when it comes to issues affecting our industry.

The construction industry added 33,000 jobs on net in January, 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 grown by 44,000 jobs, an increase of 0.5%.

Construction input prices decreased 0.6% in December 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 decreased 0.7% for the month.

The national December 2025 not seasonally adjusted construction unemployment rate was 5.0%, a 0.2% decrease from December 2024, according to a state-by-state analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data conducted by Associated Builders and Contractors. The analysis found that 60% of states (30) had lower estimated construction unemployment rates over the same period, 17 had higher rates and three states (New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Texas) had the same rate. All but five states had construction unemployment rates below 8%.

National nonresidential construction spending remained virtually unchanged on a monthly basis in October and was down 0.9% year over year, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data U.S. Census Bureau data. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $1.25 trillion.

The construction industry lost 11,000 jobs on net in December, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. On a year-over-year basis, industry employment grew by 14,000 jobs, an increase of 0.2%.

Associated Builders and Contractors reported that its Construction Backlog Indicator rose to 8.2 months in December, according to an ABC member survey conducted Dec. 22 to Jan. 7. The reading is up 0.1 months since November but down 0.1 months from December 2024.

Construction input prices increased 0.6% in November 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 increased 0.6% for the month.

The construction industry needs to attract an estimated 349,000 net new workers in 2026 to meet demand for construction services, according to a proprietary model developed by Associated Builders and Contractors. In 2027, the industry will need to bring in 456,000 new workers to meet demand as construction spending growth is poised to resume for the first time in years.