Workforce Exposure Index™
Five-component composite index measuring operational workforce constraint across U.S. construction markets at state resolution.
Purpose
Establish market-level operational context — the pressure gradient a project encounters regardless of specific role mix.
Research question
Which state construction labor markets carry meaningful workforce execution risk at the current snapshot?
Variables used
- Compensation pressure (OEWS wage positioning)
- Labor supply constraint (QCEW employment trend)
- Demand pressure (posting volume proxy)
- Contractor concentration (license registry depth)
- Federal award activity (USAspending momentum)
Data sources
- BLS OEWS
- BLS QCEW
- USAspending
- State contractor registries
- Multi-ATS posting snapshot
Weighting methodology
Equal-weight composite of five normalized components, each banded into tier thresholds calibrated against historical market stress events.
Version history
| Version | Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| v1.0 | 2024-Q4 | Initial three-component index |
| v2.0 | 2025-Q2 | Added contractor concentration and award activity components |
| v2.1 | 2026-Q2 | Refined tier thresholds; added confidence framing |
Related publications
National Workforce Exposure Brief
Composite operational exposure across U.S. construction labor markets — state tiering across four exposure bands.
Read reportMarket Heatmap
Geographic state grid colored by operational exposure tier — portfolio-level exposure mapping at a glance.
Read reportWorkforce Exposure Index™
Five-component composite index measuring operational workforce constraint across U.S. construction markets.
Read reportRelated datasets
Workforce Market Data
BLS QCEW construction employment, trend direction, and exposure tier output from the WEI composite.
Compensation Data
BLS OEWS wage estimates for core construction execution roles with regional spread calculations.
Federal Awards
State-level federal construction contract-award momentum from USAspending obligation data.