Building and maintaining all kinds of structures is what makes the construction industry tick. People who work in construction build homes, manufacturing plants, and office buildings, as well as streets and highways, sewers, irrigation projects, and more. The industry also includes activities such as painting, electrical work, and plumbing.
The construction industry status and the country’s economic growth are strongly linked. When construction is up, spending increases on related products like furniture, appliances, or equipment to outfit new structures. Related areas such as property development and material suppliers also benefit from construction industry growth. And when large numbers of workers are hired for construction projects, they spend their earnings on other parts of the economy as well.
In a similar vein, when there’s a downturn in the economy, the construction industry often slows, and a ripple effect is felt throughout related industries, which are then forced to shrink their production and lay off workers.
A large number of jobs in construction are expected to open up in the next few years as highly-skilled and experienced trades workers—such as laborers, carpenters, electricians, plumbers, equipment operators, painters, and supervisors—retire from the workforce. Many employers want to attract women and people of color to positions in the skilled trades, as they are currently often underrepresented on the job.
Construction fields with the largest number of workers include construction laborers, carpenters, electricians, plumbers, construction equipment operators, construction managers, painters, and cement masons.
Quick facts to know:
- Over 7 million workers are employed in the industry with more than 800,000 new jobs expected in the next decade.
- Safety equipment improvements are continuously under development to minimize risk of injury for construction industry workers.
- Builders increasingly use modular and prefabricated products to speed up project timelines dramatically.
- Many designers and builders are using sustainable materials and minimizing resource use, for example reusing waste water for toilets, and recycling construction materials. Innovation in eco materials is a key area of growth.