The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Opening and Labor Turnover Survey shows the construction industry registered 188,000 job openings in August, which is down by 115,000 from July and down by 116,000 from August 2024, 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 August was 2.2%, and the quit rate was 1.8%.
“Construction job openings plunged in August, falling to the lowest rate in nearly a decade,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “While this data series tends to be volatile on a month-to-month basis, the precipitous decline in job openings aligns with other indicators like construction spending and employment, both of which have fallen in recent months. Contractors remain relatively optimistic about the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index, yet recent data has made it abundantly clear that the construction industry is currently contracting.”
