Labor Report: Manufacturers Struggle to Hire Workers in These Industries

New data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics finds the U.S. manufacturing sector added jobs in July, while job openings in the sector remain at historic levels.

In July, U.S. manufacturers added 27,000 positions. Meanwhile, employment in the U.S. economy overall increased by 943,000 jobs and the unemployment rate eased a half percent to 5.4%. The labor participation rate settled at 61.7--1.6% than pre-pandemic levels, and the lowest rate the nation has seen since 1977.

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So what sectors gained and added jobs? Today, we're exploring the industries that hired in July and those that struggled to hire workers.  But first, let’s take a look at manufacturing job openings.

Manufacturing Job Openings Remain at Record Levels

The latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover, released in July, finds that the number of job openings in the sector now stands at 856,000 as of May 2021, easing off the all-time record high of 870,000 recorded for April of 2021. To put this in perspective, job openings in manufacturing in May of 2020 stood at 323,000.

Durable goods job openings stood at 458,000 positions, while non-durable goods job openings hit 398,000 in May.

Amid skyrocketing demand, manufacturers are struggling with a scarcity of workers. Even before the pandemic, manufacturers faced a tight labor market and a persistent skills gap. The labor crunch remains a top concern among industrial executives.

The Manufacturing Sectors That Hired the Most Worker in July 2021

In July, both durable and non-durable goods manufacturing added jobs, with durable goods adding 20,000 jobs and non-durable goods adding another 7,000.

Machinery was the star of this month’s durable goods labor report, adding 6,800 jobs. This was followed by miscellaneous durable goods manufacturing, which added 5,500 jobs and fabricated metals, which added 4,500 positions. Meanwhile, primary metals added 1,900 workers, while wood products, non-metallic mineral products, and motor vehicles posted marginal increases jobs.

On the non-durable goods side, we saw some major strides made by food processing companies, which added 4,000 jobs, followed by miscellaneous non-durable goods manufacturing with 3,200 positions. Meanwhile, the chemicals industry hired 2,600 and textiles and plastics both saw marginal gains.

The Manufacturing Industries That Struggled to Hire in July 2021

With job openings in manufacturing at record levels, losses in the following manufacturing sectors likely suggest that companies are struggling to hire in these industries.

Amongst durable goods industries, losses were few and far between, limited to transportation equipment, down 1,500 jobs, semiconductors and electronic components (-800); electronic instruments (-500) and computer and electronic products (-500).

Job losses were more widespread on the nondurable goods side, reported in 5 of 10 industries, including apparel (-700); paper products (-500); printing (-500); and petroleum products (-400).

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