ABC: Construction Job Openings Remain ‘Extraordinarily Low’ in October

WASHINGTON, DC —The construction industry had 213,000 job openings on the last day of October, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. JOLTS defines a job opening as any unfilled position for which an employer is actively recruiting.

Industry job openings decreased by 18,000 in October and are down by 36,000 from the same time last year.

“The number of open, unfilled construction jobs remained extraordinarily low in October,” said ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu. “Hires, on the other hand, fell sharply for the month. This is consistent with other recent data, most of which has shown that the construction industry has been in a state of contraction throughout the majority of 2025.

“Because of the government shutdown, this JOLTS release is the most current indication of construction industry activity, and more updated data will not be available until later this month,” said Basu. “Despite what has been a fairly dismal stretch of industry data, contractors remain upbeat about their hiring intentions over the next six months, according to ABC’s Construction Confidence Index.”

Visit abc.org/economics for the Construction Backlog Indicator and Construction Confidence Index, plus analysis of spending, employment, job openings and the Producer Price Index.

Celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2025, Associated Builders and Contractors is a national construction industry trade association established in 1950 with 67 chapters and more than 23,000 members. Founded on the merit shop philosophy, ABC helps members develop people, win work and deliver that work safely, ethically and profitably for the betterment of the communities in which ABC and its members work. Visit us at abc.org.