America’s labor market may be cooling off, but one unexpected blue collar industry that is heating up across the country is construction.
The booming construction industry is part of an increasing demand for skilled laborers such as carpenters, millwrights, drywall workers and electricians.
Some companies within the sector are even providing training to their employees helping them achieve major life milestones including a high school diploma and a driver’s license.
Nearly 250,000 new workers joining the field since last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Arizona is one state experiencing significant growth with the Phoenix metro area alone having one of the highest construction employment rates in 2023.
This surge began earlier this year.
In January, the booming construction industry highlighted a significant deviation from past economic trends.
It was surprising given the climate of high interest rates and weak demand for commercial real estate.
But due to demographic shifts, substantial federal investment in manufacturing and a shortage of housing supply, the construction sector was kept thriving and provided a stabilizing effect on the overall economy.
Long-term issues also played a role in the boom of construction jobs, including muted immigration, an aging workforce and housing shortages, Axios reported in January.
Additionally, generous federal funding has bolstered infrastructure and manufacturing investments, and fueled the need for new workers.
The Labor Department reporting an addition of 17,000 jobs in December. Throughout last year, construction firms added an average of 16,000 jobs per month, surpassing the pre-pandemic monthly average of 11,000 in 2019.
One of the many newcomers to the booming construction industry is Austin McCabe.
McCabe was looking for a job that would also help him earn his high school diploma and a driver’s license, and he eventually became an apprentice at DPR Construction.
He completed a new partnership program between Job Corps and DPR Construction that gives people hands-on experience in the industry.
‘I found out about Job Corps, which offers both,’ McCabe told Fox Business. ‘They give you training, get you to finish your high school diploma, and they get you a new driver’s license, which I still needed at the time.’
The joint program launched last year and are now ready for the third class of construction workers.
Gretchen Kinsella, leader of DPR Construction’s Arizona Business Unit, said the Phoenix-metro area was dubbed the ‘Electric Valley’ due to the amount of new companies moving focused on ‘building a new industry.’
‘No line of sight to any lack of needs in our industry when it comes to professional and skilled labor workforce… and with all of the work in the valley, we are continuing to connect and partner with organizations that support workforce development – Job Corps being one of those,’ Kinsella said to Fox Business.
While blue collar work isn’t normally thought of as a glamorous career, that is another changing aspect of the industry, as beautiful construction workers popularize the trade through social media apps like TikTok and Instagram.
Blue collar influencers have accumulated millions of fans online, sharing short clips of their working days and projects and inspiring others to turn their hand to tools.
These influencers also discuss their salaries – as they rake in huge six-figure salaries.
On TikTok, the hashtag ‘bluecollar’ racked up 500,000 posts in the first four months of 2024, 64 percent more than the same period in 2023 – while posts under ‘mechanic’ and ‘constructionworker’ saw similar spikes in popularity.