The Number of Open Construction Jobs Soared in April
The number of open construction jobs rose to 449,000 unfilled positions in April, the highest number measured by NAHB in the history of its data series. Hiring in the construction sector fell from a May 2020 peak of 10.4% to 4.6% in April, but the number of layoffs also dropped to 1.5% as the labor market remains tight. A slowing housing market could alleviate some pressure from construction firms battling a skilled labor shortage, but attracting more workers into the construction sector remains a top priority for the remainder of 2022 and beyond, Eye on Housing reports.
Construction sector layoffs remained low at a 1.5% rate in April. In April 2020, the layoff rate was 10.8%. Since that time however, the sector layoff rate has been below 3%, with the exception of February 2021 due to weather effects. The rate trended lower in 2021 due to the skilled labor shortage and remains low in 2022 as the market remains tight.
The job openings rate in construction remained elevated at 5.6% in April, with 449,000 open positions in the sector. This is significantly higher than the 329,000 count recorded a year ago.