The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Opening and Labor Turnover Survey shows the construction industry registered 431,000 job openings in September, which is up by 56,000 from August but down by 35,000 from September 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 at a faster rate than they quit; the layoff/discharge rate in September was 1.9% and the quit rate was 1.8%.
“The number of open, unfilled construction positions surged in September and currently stands at the highest level since December 2022,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “This mirrors an increase in economywide job openings which, at 9.6 million, remains about 37% higher than at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There are, however, some signs of labor market improvement for contractors,” Basu continued. “The rate at which construction workers are quitting their jobs has normalized, with just 1.8% leaving their employers in September. While that’s a welcome development, labor shortages remain a pressing issue for the industry. Contractors laid off or discharged just 1.9% of workers in September, down from 2.2% in August and 2.5% in September 2022. With a majority of contractors planning to increase their staffing levels over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, labor shortages will remain a pressing issue heading into 2024.”
