Skilled Wages

Construction laborer salary in Mississippi

Median $18.13 an hour for 8,800 construction laborers, May 2025, with the union scale by county and the trend since 1999.

$18.13/hrMedian hourly wageMississippi, May data
$37,710/yrMedian annual payfull-time equivalent
$14.12 – $25.3110th to 90th percentilehourly range
8,800Jobs countedemployer survey

Data compiled by Skilled WagesBLS OEWS May 2025; prevailing wage as of 2026-09-28

Construction laborer pay in Mississippi: the full range

Wage percentiles, MississippiMarket wage, 10th-90th pctU.S. reference$10$20$30$40/hrMississippi: 10th $14.12 · 25th $16.25 · median $18.13 · 75th $22.01 · 90th $25.31Mississippi$18.13$14.12$25.31United States: 10th $16.87 · 25th $18.57 · median $22.66 · 75th $28.72 · 90th $37.54United States$22.66
Hourly wage percentiles for construction laborers: Mississippi vs United States, May 2025.

Mississippi ranks 49th of 51 states for median construction laborer pay, and 43rd once adjusted for cost of living (the cost-of-living-adjusted median is $20.84). 8,800 construction laborers work in the state.

Career stage (approximate)HourlyAnnualWhere it sits in the distribution
Apprentice / entry$14.12 – $16.25$29,370 – $33,790roughly the 10th–25th percentile
Journeyman$16.25 – $22.01$33,790 – $45,790the middle half, around the median
Master / foreman / specialist$22.01 – $25.31$45,790 – $52,640the 75th–90th percentile and above

Where does your pay fall?



Construction laborer pay by metro in Mississippi

Ranked median wages$0$10$20$30/hrMemphis: $21.54Memphis$21.54Gulfport: $18.69Gulfport$18.69Jackson: $18.20Jackson$18.20Hattiesburg: $17.17Hattiesburg$17.17
Median hourly wage for construction laborers by metro area in Mississippi, May 2025.
Metro10thMedian $/hr90thJobsvs state
Memphis$16.81$21.54$31.133,94019% above
Gulfport$14.24$18.69$28.081,0903% above
Jackson$14.50$18.20$23.722,020about the same as
Hattiesburg$13.54$17.17$22.684205% below

Construction laborer wages in Mississippi over time

Mississippi, 1999-2025MississippiUnited StatesSOC 2010SOC 2018 / Method changeExact wages$5$10$15$20$25200020052010201520202025$22.66United States$18.13Mississippi
Median hourly wage for construction laborers, Mississippi vs United States, 1999–2025, nominal dollars.
Table
YearMississippi $/hrIn 2025 $US $/hrJobs
1999$8.10$15.65$10.857,660
2000$8.82$16.49$11.157,280
2001$9.27$16.85$11.576,560
2002$9.35$16.73$11.906,880
2003$9.36$16.38$11.866,470
2004$9.31$15.87$12.106,050
2005$9.31$15.35$12.226,580
2006$9.75$15.57$12.667,330
2007$10.35$16.07$13.136,900
2008$11.11$16.61$13.717,750
2009$11.10$16.66$14.016,590
2010$11.34$16.74$14.087,010
2011$11.35$16.24$14.307,320
2012$11.62$16.29$14.427,740
2013$11.88$16.42$14.647,990
2014$11.99$16.31$14.957,350
2015$12.73$17.29$15.347,110
2016$13.18$17.68$16.076,380
2017$13.57$17.82$16.607,180
2018$13.81$17.71$17.218,010
2019$14.00$17.63$17.728,710
2020$14.48$18.01$18.229,110
2021$14.31$17.00$18.167,840
2022$15.61$17.17$19.597,380
2023$17.14$18.11$21.787,500
2024$17.88$18.35$22.478,260
2025$18.13$18.13$22.668,800

In today's dollars, the median construction laborer wage in Mississippi changed by +4.9% over the last ten years of data.

Union scale and prevailing wage for construction laborers in Mississippi

On federally funded construction in Mississippi, contractors must pay construction laborers at least the Davis-Bacon rate for the county. 0 of the 82 counties with a Building rate use a union contract rate (typical package — an hour including fringe); the rest use a survey rate (typical $11.36). 82 of the 82 counties still use a survey rate dated 2017 or earlier (for example Adams County at $11.95). The market median for the state is $18.13.

Union contract rateSurvey rate
Union / prevailing package, $/hr, MSAdams: $11.95 (survey)Alcorn: $11.36 (survey)Amite: $11.95 (survey)Attala: $10.00 (survey)Benton: $12.00 (survey)Bolivar: $10.00 (survey)Calhoun: $11.36 (survey)Carroll: $10.00 (survey)Chickasaw: $11.36 (survey)Choctaw: $11.36 (survey)Claiborne: $11.95 (survey)Clarke: $10.88 (survey)Clay: $11.36 (survey)Coahoma: $10.00 (survey)Copiah: $13.49 (survey)Covington: $11.95 (survey)DeSoto: $12.00 (survey)Forrest: $12.53 (survey)Franklin: $11.95 (survey)George: $10.88 (survey)Greene: $10.88 (survey)Grenada: $10.00 (survey)Hancock: $10.56 (survey)Harrison: $10.91 (survey)Hinds: $12.95 (survey)Holmes: $10.00 (survey)Humphreys: $10.00 (survey)Issaquena: $11.95 (survey)Itawamba: $13.60 (survey)Jackson: $13.57 (survey)Jasper: $10.88 (survey)Jefferson: $11.95 (survey)Jefferson Davis: $11.95 (survey)Jones: $10.88 (survey)Kemper: $10.88 (survey)Lafayette: $12.07 (survey)Lamar: $13.29 (survey)Lauderdale: $10.88 (survey)Lawrence: $11.95 (survey)Leake: $10.88 (survey)Lee: $11.36 (survey)Leflore: $10.00 (survey)Lincoln: $11.95 (survey)Lowndes: $11.36 (survey)Madison: $13.49 (survey)Marion: $11.95 (survey)Marshall: $12.00 (survey)Monroe: $11.36 (survey)Montgomery: $10.00 (survey)Neshoba: $10.88 (survey)Newton: $10.88 (survey)Noxubee: $11.36 (survey)Oktibbeha: $11.36 (survey)Panola: $10.00 (survey)Pearl River: $10.88 (survey)Perry: $13.29 (survey)Pike: $11.95 (survey)Pontotoc: $11.36 (survey)Prentiss: $11.36 (survey)Quitman: $10.00 (survey)Rankin: $13.16 (survey)Scott: $10.88 (survey)Sharkey: $11.95 (survey)Simpson: $13.49 (survey)Smith: $10.88 (survey)Stone: $10.88 (survey)Sunflower: $10.00 (survey)Tallahatchie: $10.00 (survey)Tate: $12.00 (survey)Tippah: $11.36 (survey)Tishomingo: $11.36 (survey)Tunica: $12.00 (survey)Union: $11.36 (survey)Walthall: $11.95 (survey)Warren: $11.95 (survey)Washington: $10.00 (survey)Wayne: $10.88 (survey)Webster: $11.36 (survey)Wilkinson: $11.95 (survey)Winston: $11.36 (survey)Yalobusha: $10.00 (survey)Yazoo: $11.95 (survey)Union / prevailing package, $/hr$10.88$11.36$11.71$11.95survey rate
Davis-Bacon base + fringe for construction laborers by county, Building construction. Hatched counties use a survey rate rather than a union contract.
Market median vs prevailing wage by countyMarket medianPrevailing (survey)$10$15$20$25/hrLamar (Hattiesburg): market median $17.17, prevailing (survey) $13.29, gap −$3.88Lamar (Hattiesburg)−$3.88Copiah (Jackson): market median $18.20, prevailing (survey) $13.49, gap −$4.71Copiah (Jackson)−$4.71Jackson (Gulfport): market median $18.69, prevailing (survey) $13.57, gap −$5.12Jackson (Gulfport)−$5.12Benton (Memphis): market median $21.54, prevailing (survey) $12.00, gap −$9.54Benton (Memphis)−$9.54
Market median (BLS metro wage) vs the Davis-Bacon package (base + fringe) for construction laborers, metro counties in Mississippi.
CountyRate sourceBaseFringeTotalDetermination
ItawambaSurvey SUMS2015-001 2017-04-03$12.83$0.77$13.60MS20260040
JacksonSurvey SUMS2015-013 2017-04-03$13.57$0.00$13.57MS20260052
CopiahSurvey SUMS2015-016 2017-04-03$11.61$1.88$13.49MS20260055
MadisonSurvey SUMS2015-016 2017-04-03$11.61$1.88$13.49MS20260055
SimpsonSurvey SUMS2015-016 2017-04-03$11.61$1.88$13.49MS20260055
LamarSurvey SUMS2015-017 2017-04-03$12.35$0.94$13.29MS20260056
PerrySurvey SUMS2015-017 2017-04-03$12.35$0.94$13.29MS20260056
RankinSurvey SUMS2015-014 2017-04-03$11.57$1.59$13.16MS20260053
HindsSurvey SUMS2015-012 2017-04-03$12.95$0.00$12.95MS20260051
ForrestSurvey SUMS2015-009 2017-04-03$12.53$0.00$12.53MS20260048
LafayetteSurvey SUMS2015-002 2017-04-03$12.07$0.00$12.07MS20260041
BentonSurvey SUMS2015-015 2017-04-03$12.00$0.00$12.00MS20260054
DeSotoSurvey SUMS2015-015 2017-04-03$12.00$0.00$12.00MS20260054
MarshallSurvey SUMS2015-015 2017-04-03$12.00$0.00$12.00MS20260054
TateSurvey SUMS2015-015 2017-04-03$12.00$0.00$12.00MS20260054

Building construction type, current revisions as of 2026-09-28. Residential, Heavy and Highway rates differ; look them up on the Mississippi prevailing wage page. This is not the official wage determination.

Is construction work growing in Mississippi?

55.9kConstruction jobsMississippi, 2026-08
+3.7%Change over 12 monthsseasonally unadjusted
Construction employment, 1990-202620k30k40k50k60k70k1990199520002005201020152020202556kAug 2026
Construction employment in Mississippi (thousands), construction supersector, BLS CES, not seasonally adjusted. Grey bands are recessions.

Contractor pay by county

Average pay at specialty trade contractors establishments by county (all employees, not just construction laborers), from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025 annual averages.

CountyEmployeesAverage annual payAvg weekly wage
Tunica County62$87,142$1,676
Neshoba County516$85,944$1,653
Greene County60$82,741$1,591
Marion County364$78,445$1,509
Madison County1,494$74,410$1,431
Hancock County425$72,537$1,395
Lowndes County1,212$71,442$1,374
George County150$71,249$1,370
Attala County235$69,767$1,342
DeSoto County1,895$69,197$1,331
Yazoo County185$68,659$1,320
Marshall County383$67,354$1,295

Keep comparing

Construction laborer pay in neighbouring states

Other trades in Mississippi

Questions this page answers

How much do construction laborers make in Mississippi?

The median construction laborer in Mississippi earned $18.13 an hour ($37,710 a year) in May 2025, 20% below the national median of $22.66. The middle half earn $16.25–$22.01; the top 10% earn more than $25.31.

Where does Mississippi rank for construction laborer pay?

Mississippi ranks 49th of 51 states for construction laborer pay, with a median of $18.13 an hour, and 43rd after adjusting for Mississippi's cost of living (BEA price parity 87.0, US = 100).

What is the union construction laborer rate in Mississippi?

Davis-Bacon determinations do not list a construction laborer classification for most Mississippi counties, or the trade is not covered; the BLS wage figures above are the best available measure.

How many construction laborers work in Mississippi?

BLS counted 8,800 construction laborers in Mississippi in May 2025, 7.6 per 1,000 jobs (location quotient 1.07; 1.0 is the national average concentration).

Sources and notes

  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Mississippi and metro areas, SOC 47-2061.
  • BLS Current Employment Statistics, state construction employment through 2026-08.
  • BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2025 annual averages.
  • BEA Regional Price Parities (cost-of-living adjustment).
  • SAM.gov Davis-Bacon wage determinations, current revisions as of 2026-09-28. Not the official determination.