The Blog

The construction industry had just 276,000 job openings on the last day of November 2024, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data from 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 17,000 last month but are down by 178,000 from the same time last year.

“Construction hiring fell to the second-slowest rate on record in November 2024,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “That’s especially meaningful given that the slowest rate occurred in April 2020 as the pandemic brought construction activity to a standstill. At the same time, the rates at which workers were laid off or quit also remained near historical lows, suggesting that both contractors and their employees were in a wait-and-see mode in November.

“Despite this relative stasis, industrywide job openings increased in November, rising to the highest level since August,” said Basu. “More than half of contractors expect to increase their staffing levels over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, while fewer than 10% expect to decrease them, a sign that hiring may rebound from the recent lull in the coming months.”

National nonresidential construction spending declined 0.1% in November, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. On a seasonally adjusted annualized basis, nonresidential spending totaled $1.234 trillion. On a year-over-year basis, nonresidential construction spending is up 2.8%, approximately flat in inflation-adjusted terms.

Spending was down on a monthly basis in 8 of the 16 nonresidential subcategories. Private nonresidential spending was unchanged, while public nonresidential construction spending was down 0.2% in November.

“Contractor confidence surged post-election,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Many contractors expect a combination of deregulation and tax cuts to support greater activity and profitability going forward, including substantial investment in traditional energy sectors and manufacturing. Still, there are reasons for concern.

“Nonresidential construction spending momentum has all but disappeared, despite an ongoing boom in data center construction (up 43% year over year), largely because project financing costs remain elevated,” said Basu. “With inflation remaining stubbornly high and potentially accelerating going forward, interest rates stand to stay higher for longer. Prospective tariff increases threaten to push construction materials prices higher, and shifting immigration policies could expand future worker shortages. Only time will tell whether the recent upswing in optimism will prove justified.”

Medford Wellington Service Company is clearly serious about its goal to provide its customers with one-stop shopping from southern Connecticut to Portland, ME.

When the company, which serves mostly large commercial clients, had offices in Medford, MA, Billerica, MA, and Rocky Hill, CT, a couple of years ago, they identified a gap in coverage between Billerica and Rocky Hill, CT and addressed it by partnering with Rich Strong Air Conditioning in western Massachusetts.  When customers in southern Maine were asking for more service in the wake of the pandemic, Medford Wellington responded by expanding their service offerings into southern ME, up to the Portland area.

Now the company is expanding to the South Shore, thanks to a partnership with Hub Refrigeration in Quincy that was finalized in November of this year.  Like Medford Wellington, Hub is a longstanding company with a great family culture.  It has been around for over 75 years and Medford Wellington has been in business for almost 60.

“This partnership is a win-win,” said Medford Wellington CEO Michael LaCrosse.  “They have a deep expertise in refrigeration and grocery stores and we’re able to share with them our technology, processes and procedures .”

Looking to the new year, integrating the businesses and meshing the cultures of Hub and Medford Wellington will be a top priority.   

Another benefit of expansion is that Medford Wellington can offer more career choices to its employees.  The company just rolled out career roadmaps and seeks to offer its people career options from the time they are apprentices, through licensure, perhaps office positions if physical work becomes too demanding, all the way to a potential executive role.

“We want to provide the best home for our employees,” LaCrosse said.  “People go through life changes, have families – our attitude is ‘let’s figure out a way to make it work and support our employees.’”

In November, the Gould Construction Institute cut the ribbon on its new training facility located in Medford Wellington’s Billerica location, a process that started with a conversation between LaCrosse and Gould Education Director Diane Craven at ABC MA’s holiday open house a couple of years ago.

“Gould is educating the new generation of skilled tradespeople, equipping individuals with the hands-on knowledge and experience they need to thrive entering a trades career path. Medford Wellington shares this vision, which is why we have been supporting Gould for 21 years.,” LaCrosse said.

In short, 2024 had been a milestone year for Medford Wellington filled with growth and new partnerships, with no sign of slowing down in 2025.

Atlas doesn't shy away from challenging projects.  Last year, a Connecticut company called us because new concrete they had poured for their manufacturing floor was failing in spots and was too high in others.  The company that poured the defective floor had no idea how to fix it.  The general contractor called in a consultant to determine the best way to fix the floor and the consultant called Atlas.  

The fix was not easy.  It included shaving concrete, removing sections and a true team effort to keep the dust (from shaving) well above OSHA standards. What was scheduled to be a six- week project turned into three months.  There were many meetings where tensions ran high, solutions seemed nonexistent and it would have been very easy to quit, but Atlas wasn’t going to do that.

Instead, they dug in, using every resource and talking to other flooring companies across the United States to see if they had a similar experience and how and if they resolved it.

Regarding Industry Trends

With the exception of polished concrete, what Atlas does isn’t trendy; it's functional. 

Polished concrete is popular for retail purposes - it looks good when done correctly and is easy to maintain.  It also looks great in a large lighted area like a car dealership showroom or a grocery store.

The functionality of what Atlas does?  They prep floors for their final covering.  This includes, but isn't limited to, removing carpet, carpet glue, VCT tiles, wood and even failed concrete.  Atlas has a machine called a shot blaster that profiles floors - creates a surface that is ready to accept new materials. 

Atlas is a certified installer of Ardex and Dur-A-Flex – self-leveling underlayment for floors.

Construction input prices were unchanged 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 increased 0.1% for the month.

Overall construction input prices are 0.5% higher than a year ago, while nonresidential construction input prices are 0.3% higher. Prices decreased in two of the three energy subcategories last month. Crude petroleum prices were down 3.3%, while unprocessed energy materials prices were down 2.0%. Natural gas prices were up 2.6% in November.

“Construction input prices are up just 0.2% through the first 11 months of 2024,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “However, that encouraging year-to-date price growth primarily reflects declining energy prices and obscures price escalation that has occurred for specific materials. Prices for copper wire and cable and softwood lumber, for instance, are up nearly 12% year over year.

“While input prices have, in total, been well behaved, yesterday’s Consumer Price Index release indicated that economywide inflation reaccelerated in November,” said Basu. “The year-over-year rate of price increase, at 2.7%, remains close to the Federal Reserve’s 2.0% target, yet the recent uptick suggests that inflation may prove more stubborn than previously expected. This rebound in inflation aside, contractors remain optimistic about the coming year, with greater than 60% expecting their sales to increase over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index.”

The construction industry added 10,000 jobs on net in November, 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 risen by 211,000 jobs, an increase of 2.6%.

Nonresidential construction employment increased by 6,800 positions on net, with growth in 2 of the 3 subcategories. Nonresidential specialty trade added the most jobs on net, with employment in the category increasing by 7,000 positions. Heavy and civil engineering added 1,500 jobs, while nonresidential building lost 1,700 jobs last month.

The construction unemployment rate rose to 4.6% in November. Unemployment across all industries rose to 4.2% from 4.1% in October.

“While the construction industry added just 10,000 jobs in November, industrywide employment growth has still significantly outpaced the broader economy over the past year,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “More importantly, economywide job gains rebounded in November, confirming October’s paltry job growth was indeed a result of hurricanes Helene and Milton.

“The combination of relatively cool payroll employment growth over the past three months, combined with a slight uptick in the unemployment rate, increases the odds that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates again at their December meeting, though the greater determinant will be the Consumer Price Index data released next week,” said Basu. “For the construction industry, there is plenty of reason for optimism, given the prospect of lower interest rates and that contractors broadly expect their sales to increase over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index.”

Associated Builders and Contractors reported that its Construction Backlog Indicator remained unchanged at 8.4 months in November, according to an ABC member survey conducted Nov. 20 to Dec. 3. The reading is down 0.1 months from November 2023.

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

Backlog in the infrastructure category contracted in November, though it is still the only category with higher backlog on a year-over-year basis.

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

“Contractor confidence surged in November even though backlog was unchanged for the month," said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “This sudden improvement in confidence reflects increased policy certainty in the wake of November’s presidential election, and contractors are optimistic about the prospect of falling borrowing costs over the next several quarters. Though backlog contracted in the commercial and institutional and heavy industry categories last month, contractors expect increased activity in privately financed segments during the next six months.”

The construction industry had 249,000 job openings on the last day of October, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data from 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 decreased by 9,000 for the month and are down by 164,000 from the same time last year.

“Construction industry job openings fell again in October and are down nearly 40% over the past year,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “While JOLTS data can be volatile from month to month, especially at the industry level, the decline in unfilled construction positions is undeniable over the past few quarters. On average, just 3.4% of industrywide positions were open over the past six months, the lowest rate since 2020.

“There’s reason to suspect that election uncertainty, combined with the expectation that borrowing costs will decline over the next several quarters, delayed staffing decisions over the past few months,” said Basu. “Industry hiring fell to the lowest level since 2020 in October, while contractors laid off fewer workers than in any month on record. With industrywide employment growth outpacing the broader economy over the past few quarters and contractors on net expecting to increase their staffing levels over next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, it appears that construction job openings will rise through the early months of 2025.”

By Joe Camilo, Tocco Building Systems

The first time I served as ABC MA chair, things started fast and only seemed to accelerate from there.  Before I knew it, the year was coming to an end.  “Not this time,” I said to myself when I came back for a second time.  But here I am again, amazed that the year is coming to an end.

One thing the two terms have in common is the focus on creating a pipeline of qualified talent amid an ongoing construction labor shortage.  I’m glad to write that we’ve made important progress on that all-important front this year.

Just last month, we held the ribbon cutting for a new Gould Construction Institute (GCI) training facility.  The event was combined with our local craft championships – an example of the kinds of events we can now host in the new facility – and included a video message from Governor Healy.  Division of apprenticeship Services Deputy Director Margie Gilligan also attended, spoke about her department’s initiatives and how they expanded National Apprenticeship Week by declaring November National Apprenticeship Month in Massachusetts. 

In addition to giving GCI students access to state-of-the-art hands-on training with virtual simulators, the facility will also allow GCI to offer workforce programs to attract much-needed talent to the trades through programming such as exploratory trade/apprenticeship programs, middle school summer camps and career fairs.  It can also host the pre-apprenticeship programs conducted by ABC MA and GCI’s partner Building Mass Careers.

Speaking of Building Mass Careers, which works to attract people from all backgrounds to careers in the trades, 2024 saw BMC receive its designation from the state as a 501(c)3 public charity and hosted pre-apprenticeship training for three more cohorts of students this year, in addition to career fairs and other recruitment activities.  Executive Director Steve Sullivan even took part in a White House ceremony at which Building Mass Careers was part of the latest cohort of organizations recognized as “Apprenticeship Ambassadors.”

I have no doubt that working under the leadership of incoming Chair Luiza Mills, we will build on these and experience additional successes in 2025.

It has indeed been an honor to serve as chair of ABC MA for a second time in 2024.  Before my term ends, I want to thank both Chapter staff and you, my fellow members.  Without the great team we have at ABC, we could never have had such a successful year.  I wish all of you Happy Holidays and a healthy and prosperous New Year. 

Construction input prices increased 0.3% in October 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 0.3% for the month.

Prices increased in all three energy subcategories last month. Natural gas prices increased by 29.3%, unprocessed energy materials prices rose 9.9% and crude petroleum prices advanced by 7.3%. Overall construction input prices are 0.2% lower than a year ago, while nonresidential construction input prices are 0.5% lower.

“Higher energy prices drove the increase in construction input prices observed in October,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “While prices for a few other materials, like concrete and copper products, also rose for the month, overall input prices are lower than they were one year ago and have fallen 5% since reaching an all-time high in June 2022.”

“Heading into 2025, it’s unclear if prices will remain so well-behaved,” said Basu. “The next administration’s trade policy increases uncertainty regarding construction materials costs. Beyond the implications of potential tariffs, input prices may rise in the short term if purchasers rush to import materials prior to the implementation of those policies. As of October, contractors expected their profit margins to expand through the first quarter of 2025, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index. That portion of the index will bear close watching as trade policy shifts in the coming months.”