Construction Job Openings Increased in June 2021

A look at the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Job Opening and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) with a focus on construction, and with analysis provided by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), reveals the count of open construction jobs increased in June to 339,000 unfilled positions. Overall, hiring in the construction sector remained solid in June, increasing to a 4.8% rate.

The post-virus peak rate of hiring occurred in May 2020 (10.3%) as a rebound took hold in home building and remodeling. Hiring has generally slowed since that time, with the exception of a weather-related rebound in March 2021. Hiring has been impeded due to a lack of workers. Construction sector layoffs ticked up in June at a 2.5% rate. In April 2020, the layoff rate was 10.9%. Since that time however, the sector layoff rate has been below 3%, with the exception of February 2021 due to weather effects.

The NAHB is projecting that the construction job openings rate is likely to see increased upward pressure as both the residential and nonresidential construction sectors show gains. Attracting skilled labor will remain a key objective for construction firms in the coming quarters and will become more challenging as the rest of the economy recovers.