For the past year, Construction Junkie has been analyzing hourly wage data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for 25 different construction related professions. The goal was to highlight how workers were compensated in each of the U.S.’ 50 states.
We also counterbalanced the raw hourly wage data with the cost of living index of the states to determine how the pay construction workers in each state was counterbalanced by the cost of groceries, housing, utilities, transportation, health, and other miscellaneous costs. All cost of living adjustment data came from Missouri Economic Research and Information Center (MERIC).
We’ve previously published a list of The 10 Highest Paid Construction Jobs That Only Require High School Diploma, but we thought it would be interesting to examine each state individually to find out where construction workers can live most comfortably.
To follow along with our state-by-state breakdown of best states to work in construction, click here.
Rankings System
For the purpose of this list, each state’s ranking was determined by calculating the average ranking of hourly wages after being adjusted for cost of living for each of the 25 professions we examined. There are, of course, many ways to determine how good a state is to work in, but, at the end of the day, all workers have to be able to provide for them and their families, so wages should play a large role. If you see a state ranked #51 in a certain category, that is because Washington DC was included in the original data set, but was not included in this series.
#23 Arizona
Arizona, home of the phrase “…but it’s more of a dry heat,” comes in at #23 on our countdown. The state also has the 6th largest total area in the country, the 14th highest population, and is ranked #3 in job growth according to US News. Wait…6+14+3=the number 23. Coincidence? Probably…because I cherry picked those rankings to make the joke work. Does anybody read this part?
Arizona’s cost of living is 3.5% below the national average, according to MERIC, which helped them jump about 7 spots in the rankings after adjustment. There are two professions ranked in the top 10, including security and fire systems installers at #2 and solar panel installers at #5. The lowest ranked professions in the state are insulation workers at #40 and crane operators at #38.
If you’d like to see the breakdown of a specific profession, click the link the spreadsheet below:
Best Construction Jobs in Arizona
This list is determined by selecting the jobs that were ranked the highest:
1. Security & Fire Systems Installer
2. Solar Panel Installer
3. Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Worker
T 4. Roofer
T 4. Floor Layer
Worst Construction Jobs in Arizona
This list is determined by selecting the jobs ranked the lowest:
1. Insulation Worker
2. Crane Operator
3. Brick & Block Mason
4. Iron & Steel Worker
5. Construction Manager
Welders are essential on many construction jobs throughout the US, especially in bridge construction and high rise buildings. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) groups Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers into one category, but their jobs essentially boil down to joining and cutting metal.