Construction Industry Reports More Open Jobs in July

While the number of jobs in the overall job market decreased in July, the construction industry recorded the opposite trend. According to an analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data from the National Association of Home Builders, the number of open construction industry jobs increased from 242,000 in June to 306,000 in July. The construction job openings rate increased to 3.5% in July, up from 2.7% a year ago. Comparatively, the number of open jobs in the larger U.S. job market decreased from 7.36 million in June to 7.18 million in July.

The layoff rate in construction increased to 2.8% in July, the highest rate since March 2023. The quits rate declined to 0.9% in July, the lowest recorded for the construction sector (data starts in 2000). The construction market appears to have experienced considerable churn in July, with job openings rising, quits very low, and layoffs increasing. Future data will allow for identifying trends.