The construction industry in Brazil employed 2.5 million people in 2024 and paid an average wage of 2.1 minimum wages. There were 191 thousand companies that injected R$95.6 billion into workers' pockets. The data is part of the Annual Survey of the Construction Industry, released this Wednesday (10) by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). Related news: Unemployment among young black women reaches 24.7%, study shows. Unemployment reaches 5.8% in the quarter ending in April, says IBGE. Brazil closes 2025 with a 5% increase in the number of jobs. The survey provides information from companies in three major activity groups: building construction (includes residential, commercial, industrial and renovations); infrastructure works, such as bridges, highways and squares; and specialized services for construction, which include painting and electrical installation, for example. The 2024 edition of the survey absorbed changes in methodology, so that the IBGE does not apply comparisons with previous years. The previous historical series started in 2007. Where are the jobs The survey reveals that companies classified in the building construction group are the largest employers. There are 894.8 thousand people in these projects, which represents 35.7% of those employed. Specialized services firms follow closely behind, with 34.4% of the sector's workforce. Infrastructure works employed 29.9% of workers in 2024. Despite being in the group with the lowest number of employees, infrastructure construction companies have the highest average number of employees per company: 39 people. In projects intended for the construction of buildings, the average contingent is 13 workers. In specialized services, eight employees. Salaries Companies that work with infrastructure works are those that pay the highest wages, with an average of 2.6 minimum wages. Companies operating in the construction of buildings paid 1.9 minimum wages, ahead of those in specialized services (1.8). In 2024, the national minimum wage was R$1,412. Art/Brazil Agency Value of work IBGE researchers arrived at the total value of incorporations, construction work and services, which reached R$522.5 billion in 2024. See the value of work by segment: Infrastructure: R$200.9 billion; Construction of buildings: R$1989 billion; Specialized services: R$122.8 billion. With data on the value of work, the research reached RC8, an indicator that points out the size of the market captured (degree of concentration) by the eight main companies in the sector, which stood at 3.1%. This level indicates an industry that is not very concentrated, without monopolies. Works delivered The research reveals the main projects delivered in the country by the civil construction sector in relation to the value of the work. Check the ranking: Highways, railways, urban works and special works of art: 22.8%; Residential works: 22.2%; Specialized services for construction: 19.2% Infrastructure works for electricity, telecommunications, water, sewage and pipeline transport: 12.8%; Industrial, commercial and other non-residential buildings: 10.7%; Construction of other infrastructure works: 10.5%; Incorporation of properties built by other companies: 1.9%. Costs Under the cost optimum, labor is what weighs most on companies' budgets, with 30.7% of the total. Soon after, the largest share was the so-called "intermediate consumption", which brings together operational expenses such as fuel, maintenance, machine rentals and services provided by third parties (excluding materials and contractors), accounting for 22.5%. The other costs were construction materials (22.3%), other expenses ─ made up of taxes, fees, land costs, depreciation and financial expenses ─ (14.7%) and works and services contracted to third parties (9.7%). Construction contractors According to IBGE, of every R$3 in value of work in 2024, R$1 was demanded by the public sector, that is, 33%, with 67% falling to the private sector. In the specific case of infrastructure works, the public sector represents 48.2% of the demand for construction. In the construction of buildings, the participation of governments as contractors is reduced to 22.9%. In specialized services, 19.5%. For IBGE analyst Marcelo Miranda Freire de Melo, these data reveal the relevance of the public sector for civil construction in the country. "This demand is very concentrated in the infrastructure works segment, where almost half of the demand is made by the public sector. In the other two segments, this relevance of the public sector is a little less, the large part is the private sector", he assesses.