Immigrant Workers Hit Record 26% of Construction Workforce, But That Share Is About to Fall
According to Construction Dive, immigrant workers reached a record 26.3% of the US construction workforce in 2024, but experts warn that number is set to decline as immigration policy tightens and economists flag the possibility of a negative net migration rate.
A Labor Pool Built on Foreign-Born Workers
The 26.3% figure comes from a National Association of Home Builders analysis of the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, which tracks country of birth but not work authorization status. Among tradesworkers specifically, the share is even higher: roughly one in three craft workers is foreign-born, according to Riordan Frost, senior research analyst at Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies.
Some trades are far more dependent on immigrant labor than others. Drywall installers are 57% foreign-born and roofers are 53%, roles concentrated in residential construction. On the nonresidential and infrastructure side, the shares are lower: structural iron and steel workers are 16% immigrant and heavy equipment operators are 14%, according to the same research.
Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, told Construction Dive that foreign-born workers are concentrated most heavily in homebuilding trades. For the seven metros that issued the most homebuilding permits between 2019 and 2023, an average of 54% of the trades workforce was foreign-born, according to Frost’s research.
The record was set before President Donald Trump returned to office in January 2025. With economists now suggesting the US may have already crossed into negative net migration, the construction industry’s existing labor shortage could worsen significantly.
What It Means for Subcontractors
- Trades with the highest immigrant concentration, including drywall and roofing, face the sharpest near-term labor risk. Subcontractors in those segments should assess crew stability now.
- Infrastructure and heavy civil contractors are somewhat more insulated, with lower immigrant workforce shares in equipment operation and ironwork, but are not immune to broader skilled labor tightening.
- Subcontractors competing for workers in high-growth metros should expect intensified recruiting pressure. In the top homebuilding markets, more than half the trades workforce is foreign-born, meaning any labor supply disruption hits those regions hardest.
- Workforce pipeline investments, including apprenticeship programs and trade partnerships, become more critical as the available labor pool shrinks. Companies that build those pipelines now will have a competitive advantage on future bids.
