Residential Construction Jobs Surpass February 2020 Levels
Construction industry employment (both residential and non-residential) totaled 7.6 million in February. Residential construction gained 31,000 jobs, while non-residential construction added 29,400 jobs for the month. Residential construction employment currently exceeds its level in February 2020, while 73% of non-residential construction jobs lost in March and April have now been recovered.
Job growth accelerated in February with widespread gains across industries, led by gains in leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, health care, and construction. Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 678,000 in February, and the unemployment rate edged down to 3.8%.
In the first two months of 2022, nearly 1.2 million jobs were created, and monthly employment growth has averaged 580,000 per month. As of February 2022, total nonfarm employment is still 2.1 million lower than its pre-pandemic level in February 2020.
Meanwhile, the unemployment rate decreased by 0.2 percentage point to 3.8% in February. It was 10.9 percentage points lower than its recent high of 14.7% in April 2020 and 0.3 percentage points higher than the rate in February 2020. While the number of persons unemployed decreased to 6.3 million, the number of persons employed increased by 548,000 in February.
In February, the unemployment rate for construction workers declined by 0.5 percentage points to 5.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis. The unemployment rate for construction workers has been trending lower, after reaching 14.2% in April 2020, due to the housing demand impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jing Fu, NAHB director of forecasting and analysis, provides more information in this Eye on Housing post.
Latest from NAHBNow
Sponsored Content
Dec 23, 2025
The 5 Types of Builders — and the One Built to ProsperMost builders want the same things: predictable profits, less stress, and a business that doesn’t grind them down year after year.
Construction Costs | Material Costs
Dec 23, 2025
Lumber Capacity Has Peaked for 2025An annual revision to the Federal Reserve G.17 Industrial Production report shows current sawmill production levels above 2017 by 7.5%, but just 0.3% above 2023 levels.
Latest Economic News
Economics
Dec 22, 2025
State-Level Employment Situation: September 2025In September 2025, nonfarm payroll employment was largely unchanged across states on a monthly basis, with a limited number of states seeing statistically significant increases or decreases. This reflects generally stable job counts across states despite broader labor market fluctuations. The data were impacted by collection delays due to the federal government shutdown.
Economics
Dec 19, 2025
Existing Home Sales Edge Higher in NovemberExisting home sales rose for the third consecutive month in November as lower mortgage rates continued to boost home sales, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). However, the increase remained modest as mortgage rates still stayed above 6% while down from recent highs. The weakening job market also weighed on buyer activity.
Economics
Dec 18, 2025
Lumber Capacity Lower Midway Through 2025Sawmill production has remained essentially flat over the past two years, according to the Federal Reserve G.17 Industrial Production report. This most recent data release contained an annual revision, which resulted in higher estimates for both production and capacity in U.S. sawmills.