The count of open construction sector jobs ticked higher toward the end of 2024, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, which includes November data, found the number of open construction sector jobs increased to 276,000 from 259,000 in the previous month. The count remained significantly lower than November of 2023, though, due to the slowdown of construction activity overall throughout 2024, according to an NAHB analysis.
The number of open construction sector jobs increased from a revised 259,000 in October to 276,000 in November. Nonetheless, the November reading of opening, unfilled construction jobs is lower than that registered a year ago (454,000) due to a slowing of construction activity because of elevated interest rates.
The construction job openings rate edged higher to 3.2% in November but remains lower than a year ago, albeit with a fair amount of statistical month-to-month noise in the recent data.
The layoff rate in construction remained in the 2% range in November (2.1%). The quits rate in construction fell to 1.7% in November.
The number of open jobs for the overall economy increased from 7.84 million to 8.10 million in November. Nonetheless, this is notably smaller than the 8.93 million estimate reported a year ago and reflects a softened aggregate labor market.
