From December 2024 to March 2025, gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments in North Carolina were 230,646, while gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments were 227,385, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Victoria G. Lee noted that the difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment loss of 3,261 jobs in the private sector during the first quarter of 2025. (See table 1.) During the previous quarter, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses by 22,903. (See chart 1.)

The change in the number of jobs over time is the net result of increases and decreases in employment that occur at all private businesses in the economy. Business Employment Dynamics (BED) statistics track these changes in employment at private-sector establishments from the third month of one quarter to the third month of the next. The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses is the net change in employment. (See the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.)

Gross job losses

In the first quarter of 2025, gross job losses represented 5.5 percent of private-sector employment in North Carolina; nationally, gross job losses accounted for 5.4 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 2.) Gross job losses are the result of contractions in employment at existing establishments and the loss of jobs at closing establishments. In North Carolina, contracting establishments lost 183,834 jobs in the first quarter of 2025, an increase of 2,312 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 46,812 jobs, a decrease of 3,931 jobs from the previous quarter.

Gross job gains

In the first quarter of 2025, gross job gains represented 5.4 percent of private-sector employment in North Carolina; nationally, gross job gains accounted for 5.6 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 3.) Gross job gains are the sum of increases in employment due to expansions at existing establishments and the addition of new jobs at opening establishments. In North Carolina, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 182,042 in the first quarter of 2025, a decrease of 14,137 jobs compared to the previous quarter. Opening establishments accounted for 45,343 jobs gained in the first quarter of 2025, a decrease of 13,646 jobs from the previous quarter.

Industries

Gross job losses exceeded gross job gains in 5 of the 11 published industry sectors in North Carolina in the first quarter of 2025. Transportation and warehousing had the largest over-the-quarter net job decrease, with a loss of 6,852 jobs. This was the result of 13,653 gross job losses and 6,801 gross job gains. The leisure and hospitality industry had a net loss of 6,423 jobs. Retail trade showed a net gain of 4,696 jobs, the largest gain of any sector in the state. North Carolina’s construction industry sector had a net gain of 4,026 jobs.

For more information

The BED data series include gross job gains and gross job losses by industry subsector, for the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as gross job gains and gross job losses at the firm level by employer size class. BED data for the states have been included in table 2 of this release. Additional information is available online at the Business Employment Dynamics homepage and the Business Employment Dynamics Summary.

The Business Employment Dynamics for Second Quarter 2025 are scheduled to be released on Thursday, February 26, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

Technical Note

The Business Employment Dynamics (BED) data are a product of a federal-state cooperative program known as Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). The BED data are compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from existing QCEW records.

More information on formal definitions of the data used in this release, along with coverage, concepts, and methodology, can be found in the Business Employment Dynamics Technical Note.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Private-sector gross job gains and losses by industry, North Carolina, seasonally adjusted

Category	Gross job gains and losses (3 months ended)					Gross job gains and losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
	Mar. 2024	June 2024	Sept. 2024	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025	Mar. 2024	June 2024	Sept. 2024	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025
Total private (1)
Gross job gains	229,846	236,425	228,393	255,168	227,385	5.5	5.6	5.5	6.1	5.4
At expanding establishments	188,360	185,116	179,369	196,179	182,042	4.5	4.4	4.3	4.7	4.3
At opening establishments	41,486	51,309	49,024	58,989	45,343	1.0	1.2	1.2	1.4	1.1
Gross job losses	229,239	230,500	245,726	232,265	230,646	5.4	5.5	5.8	5.5	5.5
At contracting establishments	173,149	183,303	181,167	181,522	183,834	4.1	4.4	4.3	4.3	4.4
At closing establishments	56,090	47,197	64,559	50,743	46,812	1.3	1.1	1.5	1.2	1.1
Net employment change (2)	607	5,925	-17,333	22,903	-3,261	0.1	0.1	-0.3	0.6	-0.1
Construction
Gross job gains	19,271	17,923	18,305	18,907	19,886	7.1	6.6	6.7	7.0	7.2
At expanding establishments	15,665	13,862	13,687	13,774	15,432	5.8	5.1	5.0	5.1	5.6
At opening establishments	3,606	4,061	4,618	5,133	4,454	1.3	1.5	1.7	1.9	1.6
Gross job losses	16,915	17,571	18,711	17,455	15,860	6.3	6.5	6.9	6.4	5.8
At contracting establishments	11,859	13,495	12,891	13,004	11,761	4.4	5.0	4.8	4.8	4.3
At closing establishments	5,056	4,076	5,820	4,451	4,099	1.9	1.5	2.1	1.6	1.5
Net employment change (2)	2,356	352	-406	1,452	4,026	0.8	0.1	-0.2	0.6	1.4
Manufacturing
Gross job gains	13,402	13,706	11,578	13,207	12,721	2.9	2.9	2.5	2.9	2.7
At expanding establishments	12,203	12,193	10,525	11,871	11,604	2.6	2.6	2.3	2.6	2.5
At opening establishments	1,199	1,513	1,053	1,336	1,117	0.3	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.2
Gross job losses	15,073	14,507	14,718	15,701	14,493	3.2	3.1	3.1	3.4	3.1
At contracting establishments	13,153	12,533	12,241	13,787	12,701	2.8	2.7	2.6	3.0	2.7
At closing establishments	1,920	1,974	2,477	1,914	1,792	0.4	0.4	0.5	0.4	0.4
Net employment change (2)	-1,671	-801	-3,140	-2,494	-1,772	-0.3	-0.2	-0.6	-0.5	-0.4
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains	9,834	9,652	8,913	9,810	9,173	4.7	4.6	4.2	4.8	4.4
At expanding establishments	7,586	7,332	7,152	7,608	7,498	3.6	3.5	3.4	3.7	3.6
At opening establishments	2,248	2,320	1,761	2,202	1,675	1.1	1.1	0.8	1.1	0.8
Gross job losses	9,221	9,113	9,466	9,079	8,797	4.5	4.4	4.5	4.4	4.3
At contracting establishments	6,364	7,017	6,512	6,641	6,572	3.1	3.4	3.1	3.2	3.2
At closing establishments	2,857	2,096	2,954	2,438	2,225	1.4	1.0	1.4	1.2	1.1
Net employment change (2)	613	539	-553	731	376	0.2	0.2	-0.3	0.4	0.1
Retail trade
Gross job gains	26,202	26,173	25,423	25,882	28,523	5.0	4.9	4.9	4.9	5.5
At expanding establishments	22,418	22,255	21,914	21,581	23,980	4.3	4.2	4.2	4.1	4.6
At opening establishments	3,784	3,918	3,509	4,301	4,543	0.7	0.7	0.7	0.8	0.9
Gross job losses	24,584	27,383	28,107	28,748	23,827	4.7	5.1	5.3	5.5	4.6
At contracting establishments	20,486	23,566	23,135	24,099	20,326	3.9	4.4	4.4	4.6	3.9
At closing establishments	4,098	3,817	4,972	4,649	3,501	0.8	0.7	0.9	0.9	0.7
Net employment change (2)	1,618	-1,210	-2,684	-2,866	4,696	0.3	-0.2	-0.4	-0.6	0.9
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains	8,199	7,496	10,772	13,468	6,801	4.4	4.1	5.9	7.2	3.7
At expanding establishments	6,556	5,988	8,028	12,159	5,558	3.5	3.3	4.4	6.5	3.0
At opening establishments	1,643	1,508	2,744	1,309	1,243	0.9	0.8	1.5	0.7	0.7
Gross job losses	12,103	8,954	8,644	7,851	13,653	6.5	4.9	4.7	4.2	7.3
At contracting establishments	10,621	7,266	6,557	6,308	12,166	5.7	4.0	3.6	3.4	6.5
At closing establishments	1,482	1,688	2,087	1,543	1,487	0.8	0.9	1.1	0.8	0.8
Net employment change (2)	-3,904	-1,458	2,128	5,617	-6,852	-2.1	-0.8	1.2	3.0	-3.6
Information
Gross job gains	4,091	3,773	4,166	3,672	3,528	4.7	4.4	4.9	4.3	4.1
At expanding establishments	3,280	2,659	3,151	2,590	2,774	3.8	3.1	3.7	3.0	3.2
At opening establishments	811	1,114	1,015	1,082	754	0.9	1.3	1.2	1.3	0.9
Gross job losses	3,730	4,150	4,507	4,079	3,923	4.3	4.9	5.2	4.8	4.6
At contracting establishments	2,586	3,144	3,034	2,924	2,987	3.0	3.7	3.5	3.4	3.5
At closing establishments	1,144	1,006	1,473	1,155	936	1.3	1.2	1.7	1.4	1.1
Net employment change (2)	361	-377	-341	-407	-395	0.4	-0.5	-0.3	-0.5	-0.5
Financial activities
Gross job gains	12,895	13,764	13,350	15,206	12,268	4.3	4.5	4.4	5.0	4.0
At expanding establishments	10,290	10,373	10,033	9,994	9,294	3.4	3.4	3.3	3.3	3.0
At opening establishments	2,605	3,391	3,317	5,212	2,974	0.9	1.1	1.1	1.7	1.0
Gross job losses	13,667	12,834	14,572	13,434	11,882	4.5	4.2	4.8	4.4	3.9
At contracting establishments	9,613	8,941	10,179	9,090	8,745	3.2	2.9	3.4	3.0	2.9
At closing establishments	4,054	3,893	4,393	4,344	3,137	1.3	1.3	1.4	1.4	1.0
Net employment change (2)	-772	930	-1,222	1,772	386	-0.2	0.3	-0.4	0.6	0.1
Professional and business services
Gross job gains	45,378	52,110	50,151	54,544	47,931	6.1	7.0	6.7	7.4	6.5
At expanding establishments	36,894	39,562	38,717	40,381	37,047	5.0	5.3	5.2	5.5	5.0
At opening establishments	8,484	12,548	11,434	14,163	10,884	1.1	1.7	1.5	1.9	1.5
Gross job losses	49,714	50,012	53,309	54,119	48,815	6.6	6.7	7.2	7.3	6.7
At contracting establishments	36,006	39,650	37,468	42,028	38,056	4.8	5.3	5.1	5.7	5.2
At closing establishments	13,708	10,362	15,841	12,091	10,759	1.8	1.4	2.1	1.6	1.5
Net employment change (2)	-4,336	2,098	-3,158	425	-884	-0.5	0.3	-0.5	0.1	-0.2
Education and health services
Gross job gains	33,529	33,960	33,070	34,597	32,649	5.0	5.0	4.8	5.0	4.7
At expanding establishments	28,021	26,625	26,778	26,455	27,155	4.2	3.9	3.9	3.8	3.9
At opening establishments	5,508	7,335	6,292	8,142	5,494	0.8	1.1	0.9	1.2	0.8
Gross job losses	26,373	28,472	29,225	28,635	29,654	3.9	4.2	4.3	4.2	4.3
At contracting establishments	19,051	22,546	20,639	21,900	22,209	2.8	3.3	3.0	3.2	3.2
At closing establishments	7,322	5,926	8,586	6,735	7,445	1.1	0.9	1.3	1.0	1.1
Net employment change (2)	7,156	5,488	3,845	5,962	2,995	1.1	0.8	0.5	0.8	0.4
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains	45,571	46,203	41,144	52,522	41,396	8.3	8.5	7.7	9.7	7.7
At expanding establishments	36,191	35,808	30,648	40,113	32,387	6.6	6.6	5.7	7.4	6.0
At opening establishments	9,380	10,395	10,496	12,409	9,009	1.7	1.9	2.0	2.3	1.7
Gross job losses	45,496	45,398	51,467	41,590	47,819	8.4	8.3	9.5	7.6	8.8
At contracting establishments	34,268	35,992	39,998	33,205	39,036	6.3	6.6	7.4	6.1	7.2
At closing establishments	11,228	9,406	11,469	8,385	8,783	2.1	1.7	2.1	1.5	1.6
Net employment change (2)	75	805	-10,323	10,932	-6,423	-0.1	0.2	-1.8	2.1	-1.1
Other services (3)
Gross job gains	8,317	9,490	9,229	9,928	9,237	6.8	7.8	7.5	8.1	7.5
At expanding establishments	6,695	6,586	7,000	6,962	6,702	5.5	5.4	5.7	5.7	5.4
At opening establishments	1,622	2,904	2,229	2,966	2,535	1.3	2.4	1.8	2.4	2.1
Gross job losses	9,460	8,537	9,604	9,677	9,051	7.7	7.0	7.8	7.9	7.3
At contracting establishments	6,794	6,328	6,046	6,944	6,775	5.5	5.2	4.9	5.7	5.5
At closing establishments	2,666	2,209	3,558	2,733	2,276	2.2	1.8	2.9	2.2	1.8
Net employment change (2)	-1,143	953	-375	251	186	-0.9	0.8	-0.3	0.2	0.2
Footnotes: (1) Includes unclassified sector not shown separately. (2) The net employment change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses. See the Technical Note for further information. (3) Except public administration.

Table 2. Private-sector gross job gains and losses as a percent of total employment by state, seasonally adjusted

Category	Gross job gains as a percent of employment (3 months ended)					Gross job losses as a percent of employment (3 months ended)
	Mar. 2024	June 2024	Sept. 2024	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025	Mar. 2024	June 2024	Sept. 2024	Dec. 2024	Mar. 2025
United States(1)	5.9	5.8	5.8	5.9	5.6	5.5	5.9	5.8	5.7	5.4
Alabama	5.9	5.6	5.8	5.8	5.3	5.6	5.6	5.9	5.3	5.6
Alaska	10.7	10.2	8.0	10.3	10.0	8.5	9.6	9.6	9.5	8.1
Arizona	8.2	5.6	6.4	6.1	5.8	6.5	6.5	5.7	5.9	5.3
Arkansas	5.6	5.3	5.5	5.8	5.1	5.2	5.7	5.2	4.8	5.1
California	6.0	6.2	6.3	6.7	6.0	5.7	6.9	6.2	6.4	6.2
Colorado	6.4	6.6	6.3	6.2	6.2	7.4	5.8	6.4	6.5	6.8
Connecticut	5.8	5.8	5.5	5.5	5.6	5.2	5.5	5.6	5.5	5.3
Delaware	6.2	5.8	6.8	6.1	5.9	5.0	6.5	6.4	6.3	5.3
District of Columbia	5.1	5.1	4.9	5.0	4.8	5.0	5.4	5.0	5.5	5.8
Florida	5.8	6.1	6.5	6.0	5.8	5.5	5.8	5.7	6.2	5.5
Georgia	6.1	5.9	5.8	6.0	5.5	5.7	5.7	6.1	5.4	5.7
Hawaii	5.6	5.2	5.7	5.3	4.9	5.1	5.6	5.0	5.0	5.0
Idaho	7.9	7.5	7.1	8.2	7.3	8.1	7.2	7.5	6.8	7.3
Illinois	5.2	5.1	4.9	5.1	5.0	4.8	5.1	5.0	5.1	5.0
Indiana	5.3	5.2	5.3	5.5	5.4	5.1	5.5	5.3	5.1	5.2
Iowa	6.2	5.6	5.3	5.6	5.8	5.7	5.8	6.0	5.6	5.5
Kansas	5.9	5.9	5.3	5.9	5.5	5.5	5.6	5.6	5.2	5.4
Kentucky	5.9	5.3	5.4	5.3	5.2	5.1	5.8	5.4	5.5	4.8
Louisiana	6.3	5.8	6.1	6.2	5.6	5.6	6.2	5.8	5.5	5.6
Maine	7.4	7.2	6.2	7.0	7.4	6.3	7.1	7.1	7.1	6.3
Maryland	6.1	7.1	5.9	6.0	5.9	5.5	5.9	6.1	5.9	5.7
Massachusetts	5.3	5.7	5.0	5.3	5.0	5.1	5.6	5.8	5.5	5.1
Michigan	5.5	5.7	5.3	5.4	5.2	5.2	5.4	5.8	5.9	5.3
Minnesota	6.1	5.7	5.1	5.5	5.1	5.2	5.2	5.8	5.1	5.5
Mississippi	6.0	5.7	6.3	6.3	5.7	5.8	6.3	5.7	6.2	6.1
Missouri	5.9	5.6	5.6	5.7	5.4	5.4	5.8	5.8	5.3	5.2
Montana	8.1	7.9	7.2	8.4	8.0	7.6	7.6	8.0	7.8	7.5
Nebraska	5.9	5.5	5.6	5.6	5.2	5.1	5.6	5.6	5.5	5.3
Nevada	6.0	5.8	6.2	6.1	5.4	6.1	5.8	5.9	5.6	5.9
New Hampshire	6.4	6.1	5.6	6.3	6.5	5.8	6.0	6.7	5.9	6.1
New Jersey	5.5	5.9	5.4	6.0	5.6	5.5	5.5	5.8	5.5	5.4
New Mexico	6.4	6.1	6.3	6.1	5.9	6.1	6.5	6.2	5.9	5.8
New York	6.0	5.8	5.7	5.7	6.6	5.0	5.5	5.8	5.5	5.0
North Carolina	5.5	5.6	5.5	6.1	5.4	5.4	5.5	5.8	5.5	5.5
North Dakota	6.9	6.6	6.5	6.5	6.7	6.0	6.6	6.5	6.6	6.5
Ohio	5.5	5.2	5.2	5.4	5.2	4.8	5.3	5.4	5.1	4.9
Oklahoma	5.8	5.7	6.1	6.0	5.5	5.3	6.4	5.5	5.5	5.3
Oregon	6.6	6.0	6.3	6.2	5.8	5.9	6.3	6.6	6.6	6.2
Pennsylvania	5.1	4.9	5.1	5.2	5.0	4.6	5.2	5.0	4.8	4.7
Rhode Island	6.8	6.6	6.2	7.3	6.6	5.7	6.7	6.4	6.3	5.9
South Carolina	6.5	6.1	6.2	6.4	6.1	6.3	6.0	5.9	5.9	5.5
South Dakota	6.4	6.0	5.9	6.7	6.2	5.8	6.2	5.9	5.9	6.5
Tennessee	5.7	5.5	5.6	5.5	5.4	5.0	5.6	5.7	6.2	5.1
Texas	5.5	5.4	5.7	5.8	5.1	5.1	5.3	5.3	5.2	5.1
Utah	6.9	6.5	6.8	6.8	6.6	6.3	6.9	6.2	6.3	6.0
Vermont	7.5	6.7	6.6	6.7	6.9	6.3	7.4	7.1	6.7	6.8
Virginia	5.8	5.6	5.8	5.8	5.6	5.3	5.7	5.7	5.5	5.1
Washington	5.7	5.9	5.8	5.8	5.7	6.2	5.6	5.8	5.7	5.5
West Virginia	7.1	7.0	5.9	6.5	6.4	6.1	6.7	6.6	6.1	5.7
Wisconsin	5.7	5.3	5.1	5.3	5.0	4.9	5.6	5.5	5.2	4.9
Wyoming	8.4	8.2	8.9	8.9	8.1	8.4	8.8	8.5	8.3	8.7
Puerto Rico	5.3	5.5	5.4	4.3	6.3	4.7	4.9	5.0	5.4	5.4
Virgin Islands	6.4	4.9	4.7	5.2	5.4	5.3	5.7	7.5	10.8	7.6
Footnotes (1) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. The sum of the states will not necessarily add to the U.S. total because of the independent seasonal adjustment of each state.