Labor Market by the Numbers
In April 2025, job openings for manufacturing decreased by 16,000 to 397,000 from March, which is back to below the average pre-pandemic (2017– 2019) level of job openings of 432,000. Nondurable goods job openings in April stayed the same at 136,000, while durable goods job openings declined by 16,000 to 245,000 in April.
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The Headline Number: While the number of job openings declined in manufacturing in April, job postings rose in the larger economy to 7.4 million, an increase of 191,000 from the previous month but a decrease of 228,000 from the previous year.
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Why it matters: While the increase in manufacturing activity in January and February provided a slight boost to job openings, the slowdown in activity since then has reduced the need for new workers. Furthermore, this data reflects a labor market that has cooled from the uniquely tight labor market seen during the pandemic when the average number of openings in the sector was 832,500 (2021– 2023).
Weakness in Manufacturing: In addition to the manufacturing job postings level falling significantly in April, the job openings rate is now the lowest of any industry at 2.9%, down from 3.0% in March and 3.7% the previous year. The low job openings rate highlights how manufacturers are uniquely challenged in today’s current economic climate.
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Nonfarm Comparison: Meanwhile, the job openings rate for the overall economy ticked up to 4.4%, up from 4.3% in March but down from 4.6% last year, remaining far higher than the manufacturing industry’s rate.
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Upskilling Our Workforce: As the pace of hiring slows amid economic headwinds, manufacturers may want to turn their focus to addressing the talent gap in the industry by upskilling their existing workforce. Since there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to revamping their training programs, manufacturers need to tailor their upskilling strategies to fully realize the transformative benefits and ensure that they remain competitive.
