Record Job Vacancies
Job openings in Minnesota soared to a record high in the second quarter of 2021 as demand for workers increased 84% compared to the second quarter of 2020. As the state’s economy continues to recover from the pandemic recession, employers in Minnesota reported more than 205,000 vacancies as they struggled to fill open jobs. Included below are links to regional economic update videos that dig in to the details of the most recent Job Vacancy Survey:
There were a new record of 119,505 vacancies in the 7-county Twin Cities metro area, an +81.4% increase compared to 2020. By industry, the most vacancies were in Health Care & Social Assistance (23,067 vacs.), Accommodation & Food Services (21,400 vacs.), Retail Trade (18,624 vacs.), and Manufacturing (8,429 vacs.). The median wage offer across all vacancies was $17.86, highest in the state.
Vacancies more than doubled in Central Minnesota over the past year, up +104.5% to 21,935 vacancies. The median wage offer was $15.28, as demand for food prep and retail workers returned. The largest number of vacancies were in Accommodation & Food Services (4,583 vacs.) and Retail Trade (4,287 vacs.), and vacancies jumped for Transportation & Material Moving workers.
Hiring demand surged +101.8% in Northeast Minnesota over the year, as a strong summer tourism season and continuing healthcare needs led to nearly 13,000 vacancies. Over one-third (35.3%) of vacancies in the Arrowhead were in Health Care & Social Assistance (4,551 vacs.), the highest concentration of healthcare demand in the state.
In Northwest Minnesota, employers reported just over 17,750 vacancies in the second quarter of 2021. That was up more than 5,500 compared to 2020, a 45% increase. Like the state and several regions, the number in Northwest set a new record high for job vacancies in 2021. As we’ve previously reported in these economic update videos, Northwest saw a smaller decline than other regions, and saw a much faster recovery.
Employers in Southeast Minnesota reported the highest number of vacancies on record in the second quarter of 2021, with over 21,500 openings. That was a +123.5% increase over 2020, the fastest increase of any region in the state! The median wage offer climbed to $16.01, up +5.3% compared to one year ago, showing that employers are raising wages to attract workers.
With 12,116 vacancies, Southwest had less than one jobseeker per vacancy, dropping back to pre-pandemic levels. Employers were struggling to find workers prior to the pandemic, but things seem to have gotten more difficult as the economy recovers but the labor force hasn't. It’s a very different scenario than the last recession, when there were more than 3 workers per vacancy, and it took several years for job vacancies to bounce back to pre-recession levels.
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