Idaho’s construction industry is one of the top industries, besides health care and social assistance, with the highest percentage growth in Idaho. The industry has grown over 60% from 2004 to 2024, driven by accelerated population gains and economic development from the past few decades.
Employment
Construction employment declined by 44% (or 22,887 people) during 2007-2011 as a consequence from the Great Recession’s impact on the economy. As the economy continued to recover after the Great Recession, so did construction employment with consistent growth over the past decade. Construction employment passed its previous 2007 peak in 2020 and has continued to experience growth with the current average employment in 2024 consisting of 66,389 private construction workers in Idaho.
Figure 1. Private construction jobs in Idaho
Wages
Average construction wages have been consistently higher than Idaho’s overall average wage (shown in Figure 2), indicating that work in the construction industry is in greater demand than an average industry. The wage gap has been widening in recent years. The industry’s average wage was 4.6% higher than the overall state’s average wage in 2019. This created a wage gap in recent years, to 6.7% in 2023.
The construction industry has also experienced higher demand for labor than Idaho’s overall industry average as signaled by construction’s higher average wage. Additionally, demand for construction labor has been growing in recent years as the wage gap between construction and overall average wage has been growing.
Figure 2. Average wage and construction wage in Idaho
Outlook
Housing costs in Idaho exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic as net migration to the state increased at a rapid rate. The state’s population grew 3.4% (or 60,355 people) from 2019 to 2020. During the same year, Idaho’s median home prices increased 17% (or $63,434) from January to December 2020.
Since 2022, home prices have been influx as interest rate hikes beginning in 2022 have impacted mortgage rates and cooling demand across the economy. Even as interest rates have begun to cool in 2024, U.S. existing home sales fell in 2024 to its lowest level since 1995. As mortgage rates continue to hover around 7%, would-be sellers are holding out to keep their lower rate locked in before the pandemic — while would-be buyers are experiencing sticker shock in addition to high borrowing costs.
Figure 3. Median listing prices in Idaho
The Idaho Department of Labor’s 2022-2032 projections show that the construction industry is projected to grow by 25.6% (or 16,463 workers) from 2022-2032. This is the highest projected percentage growth for any industry in Idaho. The construction occupations with the highest projected percentage 10-year growth rate are septic tank servicers and sewer pipe cleaners (+30.1%), carpenters (+30.1%), electricians (+28.85), floor layers, except carpet, wood and hard tiles (+27.4%), and tile and stone setters (+26.9%). Idaho’s construction industry is projected to thrive as our state continues to see population growth and have a strong investment.
Seth.Harrington@labor.idaho.gov, labor economist
Idaho Department of Labor
208-696-2364
This Idaho Department of Labor project is funded by the U.S. Department of Labor for SFY25 as part of a Workforce Information grant (40%) and state/nonfederal funds (60%) totaling $885,703.
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