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At a construction companyLesson 1 of 2

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14 min

Who works at a construction company

A building goes up because dozens of people each do one part, and many of them don't work for the company whose sign hangs on the fence. Meet the team at a general contractor: who does what, who answers to whom, and what a day on site is like.

Ticket 01 · The guess

How big is a builder's own team?

The company that signs with a building's owner and runs the whole job is called a general contractor. In 2022, how many employees did a builder of shops, offices and schools have at each of its locations, on average?

80 employees
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Sources and every number (14)

Sources

  • 2022 Economic Census, Construction: Summary Statistics for the U.S., States, and Selected Geographies (table EC2223BASIC; NAICS 236118 residential remodelers, 238220 plumbing, heating and air-conditioning contractors, 236220 commercial and institutional building construction) · U.S. Census Bureau, 2022
  • Tutor Perini Corporation, Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 (filed 2026-02-26), Item 1: segments and human capital (employees at December 31, 2025, hourly and salaried, union, safety training) · Tutor Perini Corporation, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, 2025
  • Occupational Outlook Handbook: Construction Managers (jobs in 2025, pay in May 2025, projections 2025-35) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025
  • Stop Falls: fall prevention campaign (falls to a lower level and all construction deaths in 2024, from BLS data) · Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 2024
  • 29 CFR 1926.501, Duty to have fall protection (paragraph (b)(1): unprotected sides and edges six feet or more above a lower level) · Occupational Safety and Health Administration
  • Industries at a Glance: Construction of Buildings, NAICS 236 (occupational employment and wages for this industry, May 2025) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025
  • Occupational Outlook Handbook: Cost Estimators (jobs in 2025, pay in May 2025, projections 2025-35) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025
  • Occupational Outlook Handbook: Architects (jobs in 2025, pay in May 2025, projections 2025-35) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025
  • O*NET OnLine: 11-9021.00 Construction Managers (sample of reported job titles and tasks) · U.S. Department of Labor, O*NET
  • O*NET OnLine: 47-1011.00 First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers (sample of reported job titles and tasks) · U.S. Department of Labor, O*NET
  • FAR 52.236-6, Superintendence by the Contractor (Apr 1984) · Federal Acquisition Regulation (Acquisition.gov)
  • 29 CFR 1926.20, General safety and health provisions (paragraph (b): accident prevention programs and inspections by competent persons) · Occupational Safety and Health Administration
  • Summary: A201–2017, General Conditions of the Contract for Construction · AIA Contract Documents (American Institute of Architects)
  • Occupational Outlook Handbook: Construction Laborers and Helpers (jobs in 2025, pay in May 2025, projections 2025-35) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025

Every number

  • 16.1 employeescensus.gov ·2022 · Worked out from the 2022 Economic Census: commercial and institutional building contractors' employees divided by their establishments, the locations with a payroll, 2022.
  • 45.4%census.gov ·2022 · Worked out from the 2022 Economic Census: work subcontracted out to other contractors, as a share of what commercial and institutional building contractors took in, 2022.
  • 50 peopleexample (example number: Our example: everyone at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.) · Our example: everyone at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.
  • 37 peopleexample (example number: Our example: superintendents, foremen and the company's own carpenters and laborers at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.) · Our example: superintendents, foremen and the company's own carpenters and laborers at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.
  • 4 peopleexample (example number: Our example: the operations manager, project managers and project engineers at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.) · Our example: the operations manager, project managers and project engineers at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.
  • 2 peopleexample (example number: Our example: the estimators at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.) · Our example: the estimators at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.
  • 5 peopleexample (example number: Our example: accounting, payroll and the front office at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.) · Our example: accounting, payroll and the front office at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.
  • 1 personexample (example number: Our example: the safety manager at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.) · Our example: the safety manager at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.
  • 1 personexample (example number: Our example: the president, who owns the company at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.) · Our example: the president, who owns the company at a general contractor of about fifty people. Real builders split their people differently.
  • 7,400 employeessec.gov ·2025 · Tutor Perini Corporation's employees, about this many, union employees included, at the end of 2025 (its 10-K, Item 1).
  • 5,400 paid by the hoursec.gov ·2025 · Of those, about this many were paid by the hour, at the end of 2025 (its 10-K, Item 1).
  • 30 hourssec.gov ·2025 · Tutor Perini requires its operational employees to complete an OSHA safety program of this many hours (its 10-K for fiscal 2025, Item 1).
  • 38%bls.gov ·2025 · Share of construction managers who were self-employed, 2025 (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).
  • 42 peopleexample (example number: Our example: workers on site on the day of the daily log, from every company.) · Our example: workers on site on the day of the daily log, from every company.
  • 7 companiesexample (example number: Our example: companies with a crew on site that day: the builder and six subcontractors.) · Our example: companies with a crew on site that day: the builder and six subcontractors.
  • 389 deathsosha.gov ·2024 · Fatal falls to a lower level in the US construction industry, 2024 (BLS data, as OSHA reports it).
  • 1,034 deathsosha.gov ·2024 · All fatal work injuries in the US construction industry, 2024 (BLS data, as OSHA reports it).
  • 37.6%osha.gov ·2024 · Worked out: 389 deaths ÷ 1,034 deaths, construction, 2024.
  • 6 feetosha.gov · Federal rule: fall protection for anyone on an unprotected side or edge this high or more above a lower level (29 CFR 1926.501(b)(1)).
  • 40 hoursbls.gov ·2025 · BLS: most construction managers work full time, and some work more than this many hours a week.
  • $110,710/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median annual pay of construction managers at companies that construct buildings (the construction of buildings industry), May 2025 (BLS OEWS, Industries at a Glance).
  • $79,560/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median annual pay of first-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers (foremen) at companies that construct buildings (the construction of buildings industry), May 2025 (BLS OEWS, Industries at a Glance).
  • $84,610/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median annual pay of cost estimators at companies that construct buildings (the construction of buildings industry), May 2025 (BLS OEWS, Industries at a Glance).
  • $61,570/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median annual pay of carpenters at companies that construct buildings (the construction of buildings industry), May 2025 (BLS OEWS, Industries at a Glance).
  • $47,770/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median annual pay of construction laborers at companies that construct buildings (the construction of buildings industry), May 2025 (BLS OEWS, Industries at a Glance).
  • 9%bls.gov ·2025 · BLS's projected growth in construction manager jobs, 2025 to 2035, all employers.
  • 49,700 openings a yearbls.gov ·2025 · Openings for construction managers projected each year, on average, 2025 to 2035.
  • −3%bls.gov ·2025 · BLS's projected change in cost estimator jobs, 2025 to 2035, all employers: a decline.
  • $99,280/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median annual pay of architects, May 2025, all employers (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).
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