Construction employment lost momentum across much of the U.S. over the past year, with more metropolitan areas reporting job losses than gains, according to an analysis of federal employment data by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC).
Between May 2025 and May 2026, construction employment increased in just 152 of 360 metro areas (42%), while 161 metros lost jobs and 47 remained unchanged. AGC officials say contractors are pulling back on hiring as they contend with rising material costs, slowing demand in several construction sectors, and uncertainty surrounding future federal infrastructure funding.
“More metro areas experienced construction job losses than gains in the last 12 months,” said Macrina Wilkins, AGC’s director of market insights. She warned that hiring could weaken further if Congress fails to renew federal highway and transit funding before the current authorization expires in September.
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, Texas, posted the nation’s largest employment gain, adding 12,100 construction jobs (5%), followed by St. Louis, Missouri-Illinois (10,500 jobs, 13%), Baton Rouge, Louisiana (8,400 jobs, 18%), Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, Minnesota-Wisconsin (7,200 jobs, 7%), and Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, North Carolina-South Carolina (6,400 jobs, 8%).
Baton Rouge recorded the strongest percentage increase at 18%, while Mobile, Alabama; Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, Iowa-Illinois; and St. Louis each grew by 13%. Idaho Falls, Idaho; Ithaca, New York; and Lima, Ohio each posted 10% gains.
On the downside, Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California, experienced the largest employment decline, losing 6,100 construction jobs, followed by Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Oregon-Washington (-5,200), Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, California (-4,400), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (-4,300), and the Oakland-Fremont-Berkeley, California metro division (-3,200). Lawton, Oklahoma, recorded the steepest percentage decline at 21%.
AGC noted that contractors are facing multiple challenges simultaneously. Material prices continue to rise faster than many firms can recover through higher project pricing, while demand has softened in several construction markets. Even two of the industry’s strongest sectors—transportation infrastructure and data centers—face uncertainty as Congress debates a new surface transportation bill and some communities push back against large-scale data center development.
“Contractors are facing a number of economic and political headwinds that are making it harder to add workers,” said Jeffrey D. Shoaf, AGC’s chief executive officer. “That is why we are working to educate the public about the economic benefits of transportation and technology infrastructure investments and urging Congress to pass a new transportation bill before the current one expires.”
View the metro employment data by metro, rank and top 10 changes.
