State and Metro Construction Employment - May

Seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment decreased in May in 39 states and increased in 11 states and the District of Columbia, BLS reported today. Compared to May 2008, employment decreased everywhere except in North Dakota (+1.1%) and Alaska (no change). Seasonally adjusted construction employment rose in May in 18 states, fell in 31 plus D.C., and was unchanged in South Carolina. Compared to a year earlier, construction employment dropped in 48 states plus D.C., and climbed only in North Dakota, 4%, and Louisiana, 3%. The biggest 12-month percentage declines were in Arizona, -28%; Kentucky and Connecticut, -21% each; and Nevada and Tennessee, -20% each. (To prevent disclosure of data for industries with small employment totals, BLS presents construction combined with mining and logging in Tennessee, five other states and D.C.) BLS also posted data on metro-area employment, not seasonally adjusted. Of the 311 metro areas (including metropolitan divisions of large metros) with construction (or combined) data, construction employment rose in only nine, fell in 300 and was unchanged in two.