Construction Laborers


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Construction Laborers

Construction Laborers - At a Glance

General construction workers complete a variety of tasks on construction projects.

Quick Facts:  General Construction Workers
WagesEarn $64,181 per year
EmploymentVery large occupation
10 Year GrowthAverage growth
Annual OpeningsVery High

Preparation 

Preparation

The Preparation section describes the education, training, and experience you need to prepare for work in an occupation. This section covers the types of formal and informal training programs you should take. In addition, this topic covers the amount of experience you need to enter an occupation.

For more information see the Preparation topic.

A general construction worker typically needs to:

  • complete short-term, on-the-job training

Working Conditions 

Working Conditions

The Working Conditions section describes an occupation's characteristics. This section covers the conditions and settings that workers in an occupation are exposed to. This list also shows characteristics that a worker needs to do well in the occupation.

For more information see the Working Conditions topic.

In a typical work setting, general construction workers:

  • Have a medium level of social contact. They usually interact with other workers on the job.
  • Daily wear gloves, hard hats, safety goggles, or ear plugs, depending on the job.
  • Must be sure that all details are done and their work is exact. Errors could result in serious safety hazards.
  • Usually work eight-hour shifts, though longer hours are also common.

Wages 

Wages

The Wage section tells you how much money most workers in an occupation earn at the state level. Annual wage data appear for most occupations. The annual wage is based on working full time, 12 months of the year.

The wage graph provides two types of information about wages - the median wage and the wage range.

The median wage is represented by the vertical line inside the shaded bar. Half of all workers in the occupation earn an amount below the median wage and half of workers earn an amount above the median wage. Move your cursor over the bar to see the median wage value.

The wage range is represented by the shaded bar, a range that half of all workers in the occupation earn. 25% earn less than the low amount and 25% earn more than the high amount. Move your cursor over the bar to see the wage range values.

If the graph does not display a median wage it is because it is representing several occupations. In this case, the median wage range displays in the wage statement.

For more information see the Wages topic.

In Illinois, general construction workers earn a median wage of $64,181 per year.

$0 $50 $100 $150 $200
Illinois

$ amounts are in thousands of dollars.

Employment and Outlook 

Employment and Outlook

The Employment and Outlook section gives you information about the size of an occupation, whether it is growing or declining in size, and how many job openings there may be each year.

There are five size categories for occupations in CIS: very small, small, medium, large, and very large. Similarly, five categories are used for the number of job openings: very few, few, moderate, high, and very high.

Five categories are also used for growth: declining, more slowly than average, average, faster than average, and much faster than average. The growth rate tells you how rapidly an occupation is expected to grow in comparison to all other occupations. This information is an estimate. No one can predict exactly how many jobs will be available. The rate of growth of an occupation is determined by several factors. A few major factors are the state of the economy, competition, technological advances, and environmental rules.

For more information see the Employment and Outlook topic.

In Illinois, 39,508 general construction workers work in this very large occupation.

LocationEmployment10 Year GrowthAnnual Openings
Illinois39,508
Very large
10.4%
Average
4,444
Very High
Source: Illinois Career Information System (CIS) brought to you by Illinois Department of Employment Security.