• While overall employment in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania increased 3.86% between 1997 and 2002, employment within the construction industry rose by 20.60%, creating 47,374 new construction jobs in 5 years.

• According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were 230,026 individuals employed in the construction industry in Pennsylvania in 1997 and 277,400 in 2002, an increase of 20.60% in 5 years. 

• While the average worker in Pennsylvania brought home $33,393 in pay in 2002, the state’s construction workers made on average $36,574, an increase of 8.70% more than the average worker in Pennsylvania. 

• Construction employees in Pennsylvania made $36,574 on average in 2002, compared to $35,352, the national average salary in 2002 for construction workers across the United States.

• Construction workers in Pennsylvania saw a salary increase of 15.63% from 1997-2002, compared to the average salary increase construction workers across the United States, which increased by 14.97%. 

• According to Union Membership and Coverage Database, available at www.unionstats.com, in 2006, only 16.5 percent of Pennsylvania’s private construction workforce belonged to a construction trade union.  That means that approximately 83 out of 100 Pennsylvania’s private construction workers do not belong to a labor union.

Data are from the U.S. Bureau of the Census except where noted.

• The dollar threshold amount for contract coverage under state prevailing wage laws in Pennsylvania is $25,000