Research Triangle Park — Job openings in the Triangle rose slightly this week, according to the latest WRAL TechWire Jobs Report.
Jobs are being added back into the labor market — but at a slow pace, says Dr. Michael Walden, an economist at North Carolina State. That’s based on his analysis of the August employment report, which was released by the Labor Department on Friday.
The report showed that the economy added 187,000 new jobs in August, but the national unemployment rate rose 0.3%.
“After digging into the details, the report makes two consistent findings: the labor market is slowing — but not stopping — and the labor market is returning to pre-pandemic conditions,” Walden said. First, jobs are still being added, but at a slower pace. The July numbers were revised downward, and the August gain was half of what it was in the previous year. In addition, the unemployment rate jumped from 3.5% to 3.8%. August has increased by half a million people compared to July, which is the first rise in the number of unemployed people since May.
The report also showed an increase in the number of job applicants and labor force participation.
A new report finds North Carolina ranks ninth for tech job opportunities
“There was an increase in people wanting a job, and this was also the first increase since May,” Walden said. “Also interesting is the significant increase in the labor force participation rate (the proportion of adults who are working or looking for work) to 62.8%, the highest level since the pandemic. More people are returning to look for work. Education, healthcare, leisure activities – all sectors that suffered during the pandemic – significant job gains, while the information sector continued to shed jobs.
in “soft landing”
Walden says the Fed will likely take this data into account when considering a rate hike later this month.
“My assessment is that the Fed will view (the employment report) as evidence of a ‘soft landing,'” Walden said. “The Fed wants the economy to slow, but not crash, with low inflation.”
Walden says, depending on what he sees in the report, the data could push the Fed into a no-hike stance at its next meeting.
“The Fed wants lower inflation, but they don’t want an economy with massive layoffs and high unemployment.” Walden said. “The jobs numbers suggest the Fed may get its hopeful.”
This week’s WRAL TechWire jobs report
The exclusive WRAL TechWire Jobs Report aggregates data from 20 location-based job board searches. This week’s report shows a total of 226,182 active listings (not counting frequency of posting), up slightly by 0.86% from last week but down nearly 38% from this time last year.
Here’s a look at the numbers for this week:
OTHER RESOURCES FOR FINDING TRIANGLE JOBS
Below, we’ve rounded up the latest upcoming job fairs, student-focused resources, and a list of Twitter accounts that track local job openings. If you are a student looking for an internship or entry-level position with a local company or organization, your university has resources to help you get started. Quick links below:
For job seekers in Johnston County: The recently launched JoCo Careers website helps job seekers find employers in Johnston County. (More TechWire coverage here.)
FIND TRIANGLE JOBS POSTINGS ON THESE TWITTER ACCOUNTS
Here are some of the locally run Twitter accounts that regularly share job opportunities in the Triangle: