By Manuel Gutierrez, Consulting Economist to NKBA
Even though U.S. employers were able to fill 1.72 million jobs between November and January, they still seek 11.26 million workers to fill the positions open as of Jan. 31.
- More than one-third of the openings are concentrated in two sectors: Professional Services, with 2.07 million jobs available (18 percent of the total), and Health & Social Services, with 1.94 million jobs (17 percent of all openings).
- Construction has 380,000 vacant jobs, accounting for a relatively slim 3 percent of all open positions.
- In travel and entertainment, there are 1.68 million jobs open in Leisure businesses, and another 1.5 million jobs available in Hotels & Restaurants.
- There are currently 1.73 jobs open for every individual on the unemployment rolls — near December’s all-time peak of 1.81 jobs per unemployed person.
- At the same time, the 6.27 million unemployed people might not be qualified to fill those open jobs, or they may not be in the same location for jobs, such as in hospitality or health care, that require an on-site presence.
- Along with the high number of openings, a near-historic number of workers have quit their jobs. In January alone, 4.25 million persons quit their jobs, adding to the 38 million who resigned in 2021. Hotels & Restaurants lost 781,000 workers in January, and Retail lost 717,000, although many of those are likely seasonal workers brought on for the holiday shopping period.
American employers filled more than 1.7 million jobs between November and January, but there are still over 11 million job vacancies — with construction accounting for 380,000 open positions, or 3 percent of the total.
