The number of open positions in the construction sector increased in July per the Bureau of Labor Statistics Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). The current level of open jobs is down from three years ago due to declines in construction activity, particularly in housing. Nonetheless, strength in construction for subsectors like data center construction (up 46% year-over-year) is creating demand for construction workers. Further, increasing immigration enforcement actions is having an effect on worker availability, which is also contributing to the number of open positions.

The number of open jobs for the overall economy increased slightly in July, rising to 7.27 million. The July reading was higher than a year ago (7.09 million). The recent increase in job openings for the overall economy indicates that the labor market remained resilient during the summer, despite concerns over headline risk and AI.

The number of open construction sector jobs increased for the month, rising slightly from 298,000 in June to 326,000 in July. This total is also higher than the total from a year ago (305,000). The chart below notes a declining trend followed by a new range for unfilled construction jobs since the Fed raised the federal funds rate and home building weakened.

While home building employment has declined over the last year, other subsectors of the construction industry have expanded (e.g. data center construction). The July data suggest a breakout from the range for the last two years is possible given the crosswinds affecting the construction labor market.

The construction job openings rate increased to 3.8% in July, up from the 3.6% rate estimated a year ago.

Construction hiring picked up in July, with the hires rate rising from 3.8% to 4.4%.

The layoff rate in construction was flat at 1.9% in July. The quits rate increased to 2.3% in July.