Hispanic Contractors Fill 58% Of New U.S. Construction Jobs But Capture Only 7% Of Industry Revenue
At Velocity 2025, we introduced a Construction and Infrastructure Track to emphasize the physical and economic foundation that’s needed for the physical and economic growth and prosperity of the U.S. Economy. And, the conversation hasn’t stopped. In fact, it’s more crucial than ever.
At Velocity 2026, we will continue the growth conversation. As a preview of what’s ahead, George Carrillo, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer Hispanic Construction Council, shares the HCC Inaugural research report, the data, and his analysis.
The report, titled “The Capacity Gap: How Hispanic Contractors Are Solving America’s Construction Labor Crisis and What It Would Take to Finish the Job,” is the first comprehensive national study of Hispanic contractor capacity, productivity, and structural exclusion from federal project markets.
The study draws on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Census Bureau Annual Business Survey, the Federal Reserve, and HCC’s own research to document a construction sector that has been hiding in plain sight.
These firms also outperform the industry on productivity: HCC research found Hispanic-owned construction firms generate $1.84 in annual revenue per employee compared to an industry average of $1.62, a 14 percent premium. “The Hispanic construction sector is not on the margins of this industry,” said George Carrillo, CEO of the Hispanic Construction Council. “It is the primary growth engine of U.S. construction at a moment when the industry cannot grow fast enough to meet demand. The construction industry needed 349,000 net new workers in 2026 and will need 456,000 more in 2027. Hispanic workers and Hispanic firms have been answering that call for two decades. The question now is whether federal policy is structured to accelerate that capacity or to obstruct it.”
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 375,000 open construction positions in the first quarter of 2026. The Associated General Contractors of America projects that without significant policy intervention, the industry will carry more than one million unfilled positions by 2030. The HCC report identifies three structural barriers that explain the gap between Hispanic workforce contribution and revenue parity.
Bonding qualification depends on working capital reserves and net worth thresholds that small and mid-size Hispanic-owned firms frequently cannot meet, not because of performance deficiencies, but because these firms entered the industry without access to the generational wealth and banking relationships that provide the baseline for bonding qualification.
Hispanic-owned construction firms also carry thinner working capital reserves than comparable non-Hispanic peers. Federal Reserve data consistently shows that Hispanic business owners are denied credit at higher rates and receive smaller loan amounts when approved. In an industry where contractors routinely finance payroll and materials against contract payments that arrive 60 to 90 days later, thin working capital functions as a ceiling on project size and bonding capacity. The third barrier is prevailing wage compliance complexity. The Department of Labor’s 2023 overhaul of Davis-Bacon Act wage calculation methodology created bid risk and audit exposure for small Hispanic-owned subcontractors without HR infrastructure, creating a deterrent effect on federal project bidding. HCC launched its Prevailing Wage Calculator in 2026 to address this gap.
This report exists to make sure the people who write federal workforce development legislation, infrastructure contracting rules, and SBA loan programs understand exactly what they are leaving on the table.” The HCC report calls for three specific federal actions: expansion of the SBA Surety Bond Guarantee Program to remove the barriers that prevent qualified firms from obtaining bonding; targeted technical assistance and capital programs for Hispanic construction businesses; and streamlined prevailing wage compliance tools for small subcontractors on federally funded projects.
About the Hispanic Construction Council
The Hispanic Construction Council is the national advocacy and research organization representing Hispanic construction workers, contractors, and business owners. HCC conducts original research on the Hispanic construction economy, advocates for policy reforms that expand Hispanic participation in federally funded construction, and provides direct tools and resources to Hispanic contractors and workforce development programs.