The Share of Construction Workers in the U.S. Labor Force

The National Association of Home Builders' latest employment estimates for the construction industry in 2016 found that more than 3.8 million people worked in residential construction, 2.5 percent of the U.S. employed civilian labor force.

Breaking out the data by state, California was found to have the most residential construction workers, about 500,000, and Florida was second-highest with roughly 361,000 workers. Florida's large seasonal and secondary or vacation housing stock is cited by the NAHB as a primary driver for residential construction employment in the state. Construction workers accounted for 3 percent of The Golden State's employed civilian labor force, and 3.9 percent in The Sunshine State.

These numbers reflect modest but steady job gains that took place since 2011 when construction employment bottomed out. Nevertheless, the industry employment levels remain far below the peaks reached during the housing boom when more than 11 million worked in construction, and home building employed more than 5 million people, including self-employed workers.

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