{"id":26562,"date":"2025-02-20T16:35:05","date_gmt":"2025-02-20T21:35:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.construction.com\/?post_type=blog&p=26562"},"modified":"2025-02-20T16:35:05","modified_gmt":"2025-02-20T21:35:05","slug":"jolts-december-an-economy-in-waiting","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.construction.com\/blog\/jolts-december-an-economy-in-waiting\/","title":{"rendered":"JOLTS December: An Economy in Waiting"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Olevia Sharbaugh Starkey, Economist at Dodge Construction Network<\/em><\/p>\n

Total US job openings as measured by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey for December of last year declined 7% from the previous month to 7.6 million. This represents a decline of 15% from December of 2023 and a 31% decline from the same month in 2022. Total hires, on the other hand, increased 2% over the month, rising to 5.46 million. This paints a picture of an economy in waiting. Many employers were likely holding off on posting new job opportunities until the new year and new administration provided further clarity on what is to come.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Job openings in construction followed a similar downward trend, declining 20% from November of 2024 to 217,000. This represents a significant decline of 50% from the same month of 2023. Total hires for the construction industry declined 7% to 301,000 and total separations declined 11% to 279,000 with the majority of this decline coming from a decrease in quits. Despite this moderation of openings and hiring in construction employment, the industry does not appear to be weakening. The Dodge Momentum Index, a monthly measure of the value of nonresidential building projects going into planning, averaged 204.9 (2000=100) in the last six months of 2024, a 17% increase from the average in the first six months of the year. This indicates that demand for construction still exists and new high-value projects are entering the pipeline. Keeping that in mind, the picture of an economy in waiting becomes a bit clearer.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Make sure to keep following along to see how this will affect construction starts in the future.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"JOLTS<\/p>\n

Data Source:\u00a0https:\/\/www.bls.gov\/jlt\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":26563,"template":"","class_list":["post-26562","blog","type-blog","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nJOLTS December: An Economy in Waiting | Dodge Construction Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The JOLTS December data reflects an economy in waiting. 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