Construction

Overview

EMPLOYED

1,342,500

PART-TIME SHARE

14%

WORKFORCE SHARE

9.2%

FEMALE SHARE

13%

MEDIAN WEEKLY EARNINGS

$1,598

MEDIAN AGE

37

About this data

Construction is a large employing industry. Around 9.2% of workers have their main job in this industry.

Businesses in this industry are mainly involved in activities like:

  • demolition, clearing and site preparation
  • residential and non-residential building
  • heavy and civil engineering construction
  • other construction services.

Median earnings are $1,598 per week, lower than all industries median earnings of $1,700.

Details

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    Employment

    Employment in the Construction industry grew over the 20 years to February 2025.
    The number of workers grew by 4,100 (or 0.3%) over the last year.

    Source: ABS, Labour Force Survey, Detailed, May 2025, Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA) trend data.
    Note: Over the COVID-19 pandemic period (highlighted section in the chart above), some industries have censored values, resulting in a broken series for impacted industries. This is due to large quarterly fluctuations in employment resulting in trend data being unreliable for these quarters. Where data are available over the COVID-19 pandemic period, JSA recommends caution when using these trend estimates.
    Quarterly employment, Construction Employment
    836600
    847300
    858900
    872300
    885900
    900400
    914700
    925500
    932800
    940600
    951700
    963700
    972500
    978300
    981800
    982800
    981400
    979600
    980500
    984100
    988800
    993800
    1000300
    1005000
    1007100
    1004500
    999300
    992100
    984700
    980700
    983400
    989500
    995400
    1001400
    1007000
    1013700
    1020200
    1025600
    1029800
    1032100
    1034600
    1038300
    1044800
    1053000
    1061900
    1071400
    1085700
    1104600
    1124500
    1143300
    1158700
    1169200
    1173000
    1172900
    1171400
    1171500
    1173600
    1175900
    1177400
    1176100
    1171100
    1164400
    1158000
    1152000
    1147900
    1148900
    1159800
    1180600
    1209100
    1242200
    1272900
    1296600
    1311600
    1321000
    1328400
    1333800
    1338400
    1341600
    1345900
    1346700
    1342500

    Sectors

    Building Installation Services is the largest sector in the Construction industry, employing 322,600 workers.

    Source: ABS, Labour Force Survey, Detailed, May 2025, Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA) trend data.
    Note: the sum of sectoral employment may not equal the industry total as data are trended separately, and not further defined (nfd) classifications have been excluded.
    Employment by industry sectors Employment
    Building Installation Services 322600
    Building Completion Services 220100
    Residential Building Construction 159500
    Other Construction Services 130100
    Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction 122200
    Building Structure Services 99200
    Non-Residential Building Construction 73800
    Land Development and Site Preparation Services 55300

    Occupations

    Electricians is the largest employing occupation in the Construction industry.

    The 10 largest employing occupations are shown below.

    Some occupations are common across a number of industries.

    Largest employing occupations

    Source: Ranked using ABS, Labour Force Survey, 2024, four-quarter average data, customised report.
    ANZSCO CodeOccupation title
    3411Electricians
    3312Carpenters and Joiners
    1331Construction Managers
    3341Plumbers
    8211Building and Plumbing Labourers
    3322Painting Trades Workers
    3121Architectural, Building and Surveying Technicians
    7212Earthmoving Plant Operators
    3622Gardeners
    8212Concreters
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      Data Downloads

      Industry data

      This file contains data for all 19 industries to make comparing industry data easy. Information available includes:

      • industry overview
      • industry employment (20-year time series)
      • industry sector employment
      • top employing occupations by industry.

       

      Industry data - May 2025.xlsx

      industry_data_-_may_2025.xlsx118390

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