Wages for residential building workers have grown at an unprecedented rate over the past several months, according to the National Association of Home Builders’ Eye On Housing blog. In September 2024, wages rose by 9.9%, following a 10.8% increase in August. Both months marked record high year-over-year growth rates since data tracking began in 1990.
In September, the average hourly wage for residential construction workers was $33.51, which is comparatively higher than the average wage earned in some other trades professions. During the same time period, the manufacturing sector earned an average wage of $28.12 per hour, while the transportation industry's average wage came in at $29.21 per hour.
As noted in the latest Eye on Housing JOLTS blog, the number of open construction sector jobs fell from a revised 328,000 in August to a softer 288,000 in September. Nonetheless, the ongoing skilled labor shortage continues to challenge the construction sector. Read more