Every week, thousands of craft professionals across the U.S. join the Skillit platform to connect with the nation’s best and biggest general and specialty trade contractors. This generates millions of proprietary data points which we anonymize and structure into labor intelligence to help decision-makers gain a competitive edge in a tight labor market.

Key Findings

• Charlotte’s pay for most trades is slightly below the national average. Electricians earn $29.07 vs. $30.32 nationally.

• Despite lower wage expectations (e.g., Laborers: $26.31 in Charlotte vs. $28.64 nationally), Charlotte craft professionals seek higher raises than the national average.

• Charlotte craft professionals have lower skill assessment scores, such as Drywallers scoring 47.8% vs. 55.9% nationally.

• Major craft labor employers in Charlotte include Blythe Construction, Fluor Corporation, and Lithko Contracting.

• Fewer craft professionals in Charlotte are authorized to work, with 60% of Carpenters authorized compared to 76% nationally.

• Charlotte has fewer female craft professionals, with only 0.4% of Carpenters being female compared to 3.8% nationally.

• Union membership is lower in Charlotte, with 9.6% of Carpenters in unions compared to 14% nationally.

• 46% of Electricians and Laborers are willing to relocate to Charlotte, with most coming from North Carolina (34.7%) and South Carolina (26.2%).

• More Charlotte craft professionals have OSHA 10 certification, particularly among Heavy Equipment Operators (67% vs. 61% nationally).

Current craft pay in Charlotte

While Charlotte’s craft professionals are generally paid slightly below the national average, the pay gap isn’t significant in most cases, suggesting that the city remains competitive for trades but at a slightly lower wage bracket.

Craft pay expectations in Charlotte

Craft professionals in Charlotte tend to desire lower wages compared to the national average, but the gap is relatively less than $1/hr in most case with the exception of electricians, welders and welders.

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Craft compensation flexibility in Charlotte

Most craft professionals in Charlotte are willing to consider lower base pay for the right opportunity compared to the national average, with the exception of HEOs, welders, pipefitters and pipelayers.

Non-financial compensation trends

The most significant motivations for craft professionals in Charlotte are benefits and training/upskilling, while women-friendly environments rank lower in importance across all trades.

Meet Charlotte’s biggest employers of craft professionals

Our data reveals that Blythe Construction is the most prominent employer in Charlotte with carpenters, laborers, concrete workers, HEOs, welders and pipelayers all citing it as a past or current employer.

Known for its strong commitment to safety, quality, and employee development, Blythe reports dedicating itself to fostering a positive work environment for its more than 1,000 skilled professionals, promoting career advancement and offering comprehensive training programs. Their strong safety culture, combined with the opportunities for career growth, likely makes Blythe Construction an attractive employer for craft labor in the region.

Work authorization

Craft professionals in Charlotte have lower work authorization rates compared to the naitonal average across all trades.

Gender and language

The share of craft professionals citing Spanish as their preferred language in Charlotte is generally higher than the national average with the exception of electricians. Craft professionals are also less likely to be female in Charlotte than their national counterparts.

Contactability and communication

Charlotte craft professionals respond more quickly to recruiter outreach, with an average response time of about 2 days, compared to 3 days nationally. However, recruiters in Charlotte often need more outreach attempts, especially via calls and emails, to successfully connect with craft professionals. Despite the extra effort, Charlotte recruiters achieve a higher connection rate, at 60% compared to around 55% nationally.

Union membership

Overall, union membership is lower in Charlotte across all trades.

One-way commute distance

Welders in Charlotte have the longest one-way commute of 43.62 miles, while electricians follow closely with 42.70 miles, both significantly higher than the national average.

Migration

Our migration insights show that drywallers, electricians and welders display a higher-than-average willingness to relocate to Charlotte, with 46% of professionals in these trades expressing interest in moving. Carpenters are the least inclined, with 41% willing to relocate. Despite lower percentages in some trades, the general interest across all professions remains relatively strong.

This underscores a robust external talent pool eager to move, which exceeds local availability. Most craft professionals interested in relocating to Charlotte come from nearby states, particularly North Carolina (34.7%), South Carolina (26.2%), and Florida (18.8%) presenting a clear opportunity for recruiting strategies focused on neighboring states.

OSHA

Charlotte shows OSHA 10 and 30 certification rates higher than the national average however, with the exception of electricians and plumbers lag considerably behind their national peers for OSHA 40 and 62.

Skillit’s craft labor database growth

Charlotte experienced strong monthly growth from July to August 2024, with a notable increase of 12%. While this growth is impressive, Charlotte trailed behind cities like Houston and Dallas, which saw higher growth rates of 16-18%. Interestingly, North Carolina’s capital and second-largest city, Raleigh, led the way with the highest growth, surpassing 20%.

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Our methodology

All data included in this report is as of August 30, 2024 and based on the anonymized data from over 20,000 Skillit member profiles located in, or interested in relocating to, Charlotte and 12 months of communications between employers and craft professionals aggregated across the Skillit platform.