Residential Building Wages See Fastest Growth in More Than Five Years

The housing industry’s ongoing skilled labor shortage and the nation’s lingering inflation continue to spur accelerated wage growth. Residential building workers’ wage growth increased in June at its fastest year-over-year rate since December 2018.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, average hourly earnings for residential building workers* was $32.28 per hour in June 2024, up from $29.62 per hour one year ago.

Compared to other industries, the average hourly earnings amount for residential building workers in June was:

• 16.2% higher than the manufacturing industry ($27.79)
• 10.6% higher than the transportation and warehousing industry ($29.18)
• 11.1% lower than the mining and logging industry ($36.33)

However, demand for construction labor is weakening as interest rates remain elevated. The number of open construction sector jobs notably declined to 295,000 in June. Nonetheless, the ongoing skilled labor shortage continues to challenge the construction sector.

NAHB Economist Jing Fu originally provided this analysis in the Eye on Housing blog.

* Refers to production and non-supervisory workers in the residential building industry. This group accounts for approximately two-thirds of the industry’s total employment.