High level of construction jobs remains vacant
There were roughly 232,000 open jobs in the construction sector in April, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics Openings and Labor Turnover Survey and analysis from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).
Following the Great Recession, the high-mark for unfilled construction positions was 255,000 in July 2017.
The open position rate - job openings as a percentage of total employment plus current job openings – fell to to 3.1% in April, according Robert Dietz, chief economist for the NAHB. On a 12-month, moving average basis the open rate remains at 2.9% - a post-recession high, Dietz says.
The hiring rate, on a 12-month, moving average basis decreased to 5.1% in April. In May, however, home builders, remodelers, and non-residential builders added about 25,000 jobs on a net basis.
The NAHB says it expects hiring to increase in the coming months and forecasts expansion in single-family construction. But the association also says that builders will finds ways to build more with less, Dietz says.
Following the Great Recession, the high-mark for unfilled construction positions was 255,000 in July 2017.
The open position rate - job openings as a percentage of total employment plus current job openings – fell to to 3.1% in April, according Robert Dietz, chief economist for the NAHB. On a 12-month, moving average basis the open rate remains at 2.9% - a post-recession high, Dietz says.
The hiring rate, on a 12-month, moving average basis decreased to 5.1% in April. In May, however, home builders, remodelers, and non-residential builders added about 25,000 jobs on a net basis.
The NAHB says it expects hiring to increase in the coming months and forecasts expansion in single-family construction. But the association also says that builders will finds ways to build more with less, Dietz says.