Dive summary:

• Data from the U.S. Department of Labor showed where it is best to be looking for a construction job and where there isn't much fertile ground for job-seekers.
• The comparison that The Associated Press assembled looked at employment changes in commercial and residential construction combined in March 2012 and two months ago.

The states with the biggest gains, as a percentage, were:

1. North Dakota (32.8 percent)
2. Alaska (17.1 percent)
3. Utah (16.3 percent)
4. Wyoming (12.0 percent)
5. California (11.8 percent)
6. Arizona (11.0 percent)
7. Louisiana (9.8 percent)
8. Texas (9.8 percent)
9. West Virginia (9.7 percent)
10. Massachusetts (8.8 percent)

The states that lost the largest percentage of construction jobs were:

1. Illinois (-6.6 percent)
2. Alabama (-5.2 percent)
3. Rhode Island (-3.2 percent)
4. North Carolina (-2.9 percent)
5. New Mexico (-2.3 percent)
6. Georgia (-2.0 percent)
7. Montana (-1.8 percent)
8. Mississippi (-1.6 percent)
9. Arkansas (-1.5 percent)
10. Nevada (-1.1 percent)