Dive Brief:

• Year-over-year September construction unemployment rates fell in 32 states and dropped 0.3% nationally to a rate of 5.2%, according to an analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data by the Associated Builders and Contractors.

• September's unemployment rate, which rose 0.1% from August, nonetheless marked the lowest unemployment rate for that month since September 2000, when it was 4.6%. On a month-to-month basis, construction unemployment rates fell in  18 states.

• September's nonseasonally adjusted unemployment numbers show continual improvement in construction employment in 2016. The construction unemployment rate has been on the decline since September 2010, when the rate was 17.2%.

Dive Insight:

According to the ABC, Colorado (2.4%), South Dakota (2.9%), Idaho (3%), North Dakota (3%) and Massachusetts (3.3%) had the lowest construction unemployment rate, with Colorado posting the lowest number on record for that state.  Alaska (10.1%), New Mexico (8.6%), Rhode Island (8.5%), Pennsylvania (8.1%) and Alabama (7.6%) had the highest unemployment rates. Alabama and Rhode Island had relatively low unemployment when compared to their recent-year histories, however.

The BLS reported earlier this month that the construction industry added 23,000 new jobs in September, bringing total employment up to 6,669,000, which was a year-over-year increase of 3.4% and the highest number since 2008. The nonresidential and specialty trade (residential) sectors contributed more than 65% to those figures.

The Associated General Contractors of America said that despite adding jobs in September, the industry still struggles to find qualified workers. Despite 69% of companies reporting staffing difficulty, only 48% increased pay rates to attract workers. According to the BLS, construction wages increased 2.8% year over year in September.

The ABC warned that a softening in nonresidential hiring could mean that the industry is in store for a dip in construction activity, particularly in light of tighter credit requirements, the upcoming winter slowdown and developer difficulties in finding tenants for their mixed-use projects.