The construction industry lost 11,000 jobs on net in December, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
On a year-over-year basis, construction employment increased by 14,000 jobs, a gain of 0.2%.
Nonresidential construction employment fell by 7,800 jobs in December. Heavy and civil engineering added 2,300 positions, while nonresidential specialty trade contractors lost 8,900 jobs and nonresidential building construction declined by 1,200 jobs.
The construction unemployment rate was 5.0% in December. Overall U.S. unemployment fell to 4.4%, though it remains 0.3 percentage points higher than a year earlier.
ABC experts say the industry added just 14,000 jobs in 2025, marking its weakest annual performance since 2011, excluding the pandemic year. They noted that while unemployment remains relatively low, recent job losses, declining backlogs and slowing construction spending point to a challenging start to 2026.
