Open construction jobs rate rises
Unfilled construction jobs surged in the December, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).
Pointing to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, the NAHB said that the number of open construction sector jobs increased to a cycle high of 382,000 in December 2018 from a December 2017 estimate of 149,000.
The open position rate (job openings as a percentage of total employment plus current job openings) increased from 3.9% to about 4.9%. The rate was just 2.1% a year ago.
On a 12-month moving average basis, the open position rate for the construction sector increased to 3.6%, a post-recession high, according to the NAHB.
The peak rate during the building boom prior to the recession was just below 2.7%.
Looking ahead, the NAHB said that modest growth rates for housing construction in 2019 are likely to place “downward pressure on construction job openings in future data releases,” leading to a leveling off of the openings rate for construction jobs.
The construction sector hiring rate, as measured on a 12-month moving average basis, held steady at 5% in December.
Pointing to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, the NAHB said that the number of open construction sector jobs increased to a cycle high of 382,000 in December 2018 from a December 2017 estimate of 149,000.
The open position rate (job openings as a percentage of total employment plus current job openings) increased from 3.9% to about 4.9%. The rate was just 2.1% a year ago.
On a 12-month moving average basis, the open position rate for the construction sector increased to 3.6%, a post-recession high, according to the NAHB.
The peak rate during the building boom prior to the recession was just below 2.7%.
Looking ahead, the NAHB said that modest growth rates for housing construction in 2019 are likely to place “downward pressure on construction job openings in future data releases,” leading to a leveling off of the openings rate for construction jobs.
The construction sector hiring rate, as measured on a 12-month moving average basis, held steady at 5% in December.