Job Report Signals No Reprieve for Construction

Construction job openings dropped in October to 423,000, a decrease of less than 1% from September, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics jobs report released this week.

About 5% of construction jobs went unfilled on the last day of October, according to BLS. Despite the slight decrease from the previous month, construction job openings grew over 6% when compared to October 2022. 

“While labor market tightness is easing across all economic segments, worker scarcity remains a pressing issue for the construction industry,” said Anirban Basu, chief economist for Associated Builders and Contractors, in a release. About half of contractors still plan to up their staffing levels in the next half year, according to ABC data—a trend that has persisted. “The lack of available workers will remain a headwind for the construction industry over the next several quarters,” Basu said.

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