The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Opening and Labor Turnover Survey shows the construction industry registered 341,000 job openings in March, which is down by 63,000 from February and down by 72,000 from March 2022, according to Associated Builders and Contractors. The survey defines a job opening as any unfilled position for which an employer is actively recruiting.
Construction workers were laid off or discharged at a faster rate than they quit; the layoff/discharge rate in February was 3.7%, and the quit rate was 1.9%.
“The March JOLTS data indicate a significant decline in open positions in the construction industry,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Job openings fell to their second-lowest level since mid-2021. The 3.7% of construction workers who were laid off or discharged in March is the highest rate since the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 9.6 million jobs openings in March across all industries was the lowest number since April 2021.
“Only 9.4% of ABC members expect their staffing levels to decrease over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index,” Basu continued. “Given this relatively upbeat outlook from ABC contractors and the fact that the residential segment lost jobs in March, weakness in the single-family homebuilding sector likely accounts for much of the decrease in job openings. With interest rates elevated and set to rise again at the Federal Reserve’s May meeting, these dynamics should remain firmly in place over the next few months.”
