From December 2023 to March 2024, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments in North Carolina were 226,681, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 226,676, 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 gain of five jobs in the private sector during the first quarter of 2024. During the previous quarter, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses by 58,006. (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 gains

In the first quarter of 2024, gross job gains represented 5.4 percent of private-sector employment in North Carolina; nationally, gross job gains accounted for 5.7 percent of private-sector employment. (See chart 2.) 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 187,699 in the first quarter of 2024, a decrease of 12,991 jobs compared to the previous quarter. (See table 1.) Opening establishments accounted for 38,982 jobs gained in the first quarter of 2024, a decrease of 21,913 jobs from the previous quarter.

Gross job losses

In the first quarter of 2024, 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 3.) 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 173,549 jobs in the first quarter of 2024, a decrease of 2,431 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 53,127 jobs, an increase of 25,528 jobs from the previous quarter.

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 6 of the 11 industry sectors in North Carolina in the first quarter of 2024. Education and health services had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 4,807 jobs. This was the result of 31,721 gross job gains and 26,914 gross job losses. The construction industry had a net gain of 2,043 jobs, followed by retail trade with a net gain of 1,835 jobs. Professional and business services showed a net loss of 4,601 jobs, the largest loss of any sector in the state. North Carolina’s transportation and warehousing industry sector had a net loss of 4,462 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 Home.

The Business Employment Dynamics for Second Quarter 2024 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, January 29, 2025, 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. 2023	June 2023	Sept. 2023	Dec. 2023	Mar. 2024	Mar. 2023	June 2023	Sept. 2023	Dec. 2023	Mar. 2024
Total private (1)
Gross job gains	267,982	248,920	236,764	261,585	226,681	6.6	6.1	5.7	6.3	5.4
At expanding establishments	211,219	200,284	190,453	200,690	187,699	5.2	4.9	4.6	4.8	4.5
At opening establishments	56,763	48,636	46,311	60,895	38,982	1.4	1.2	1.1	1.5	0.9
Gross job losses	216,247	236,074	252,527	203,579	226,676	5.3	5.7	6.1	4.9	5.5
At contracting establishments	172,781	193,899	199,147	175,980	173,549	4.2	4.7	4.8	4.2	4.2
At closing establishments	43,466	42,175	53,380	27,599	53,127	1.1	1.0	1.3	0.7	1.3
Net employment change (2)	51,735	12,846	-15,763	58,006	5	1.3	0.4	-0.4	1.4	-0.1
Construction
Gross job gains	21,647	17,745	18,133	23,157	18,595	8.4	6.8	6.9	8.7	6.8
At expanding establishments	15,964	13,532	13,886	17,269	15,238	6.2	5.2	5.3	6.5	5.6
At opening establishments	5,683	4,213	4,247	5,888	3,357	2.2	1.6	1.6	2.2	1.2
Gross job losses	14,641	16,862	17,883	13,113	16,552	5.7	6.5	6.9	4.9	6.1
At contracting establishments	10,927	12,817	13,020	10,999	12,044	4.3	4.9	5.0	4.1	4.4
At closing establishments	3,714	4,045	4,863	2,114	4,508	1.4	1.6	1.9	0.8	1.7
Net employment change (2)	7,006	883	250	10,044	2,043	2.7	0.3	0.0	3.8	0.7
Manufacturing
Gross job gains	14,783	13,475	13,467	14,182	13,525	3.2	2.9	2.9	3.0	2.8
At expanding establishments	13,070	12,245	12,085	12,590	12,384	2.8	2.6	2.6	2.7	2.6
At opening establishments	1,713	1,230	1,382	1,592	1,141	0.4	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.2
Gross job losses	14,013	15,430	19,723	14,458	14,028	2.9	3.3	4.2	3.1	3.0
At contracting establishments	12,526	14,151	16,691	13,018	12,212	2.6	3.0	3.6	2.8	2.6
At closing establishments	1,487	1,279	3,032	1,440	1,816	0.3	0.3	0.6	0.3	0.4
Net employment change (2)	770	-1,955	-6,256	-276	-503	0.3	-0.4	-1.3	-0.1	-0.2
Wholesale trade
Gross job gains	10,026	10,697	9,380	10,326	9,667	4.9	5.1	4.5	4.9	4.6
At expanding establishments	7,792	8,302	7,805	7,755	7,511	3.8	4.0	3.7	3.7	3.6
At opening establishments	2,234	2,395	1,575	2,571	2,156	1.1	1.1	0.8	1.2	1.0
Gross job losses	8,238	8,755	10,227	8,173	8,956	4.0	4.2	4.9	3.9	4.2
At contracting establishments	6,521	6,655	7,528	6,943	6,347	3.2	3.2	3.6	3.3	3.0
At closing establishments	1,717	2,100	2,699	1,230	2,609	0.8	1.0	1.3	0.6	1.2
Net employment change (2)	1,788	1,942	-847	2,153	711	0.9	0.9	-0.4	1.0	0.4
Retail trade
Gross job gains	30,962	28,855	27,004	27,295	25,888	5.9	5.5	5.1	5.2	4.9
At expanding establishments	25,484	24,689	23,606	22,498	22,180	4.9	4.7	4.5	4.3	4.2
At opening establishments	5,478	4,166	3,398	4,797	3,708	1.0	0.8	0.6	0.9	0.7
Gross job losses	26,377	28,511	28,400	26,512	24,053	5.0	5.4	5.4	5.1	4.5
At contracting establishments	22,614	24,762	23,872	23,879	20,148	4.3	4.7	4.5	4.6	3.8
At closing establishments	3,763	3,749	4,528	2,633	3,905	0.7	0.7	0.9	0.5	0.7
Net employment change (2)	4,585	344	-1,396	783	1,835	0.9	0.1	-0.3	0.1	0.4
Transportation and warehousing
Gross job gains	8,726	12,647	8,722	15,092	8,060	4.7	6.9	4.8	8.2	4.4
At expanding establishments	6,977	10,939	6,944	13,047	6,447	3.8	6.0	3.8	7.1	3.5
At opening establishments	1,749	1,708	1,778	2,045	1,613	0.9	0.9	1.0	1.1	0.9
Gross job losses	14,677	10,750	13,681	7,438	12,522	8.0	5.9	7.6	4.1	6.8
At contracting establishments	13,267	9,097	11,960	6,542	11,085	7.2	5.0	6.6	3.6	6.0
At closing establishments	1,410	1,653	1,721	896	1,437	0.8	0.9	1.0	0.5	0.8
Net employment change (2)	-5,951	1,897	-4,959	7,654	-4,462	-3.3	1.0	-2.8	4.1	-2.4
Information
Gross job gains	5,768	3,937	4,332	4,205	4,181	6.8	4.6	5.2	5.0	4.8
At expanding establishments	4,629	2,886	3,188	2,408	3,377	5.5	3.4	3.8	2.9	3.9
At opening establishments	1,139	1,051	1,144	1,797	804	1.3	1.2	1.4	2.1	0.9
Gross job losses	4,394	4,720	4,766	4,412	3,788	5.2	5.5	5.7	5.2	4.4
At contracting establishments	3,546	3,779	3,292	3,803	2,608	4.2	4.4	3.9	4.5	3.0
At closing establishments	848	941	1,474	609	1,180	1.0	1.1	1.8	0.7	1.4
Net employment change (2)	1,374	-783	-434	-207	393	1.6	-0.9	-0.5	-0.2	0.4
Financial activities
Gross job gains	15,759	18,442	14,240	15,835	13,009	5.3	6.2	4.7	5.3	4.3
At expanding establishments	12,126	15,113	10,931	11,101	10,537	4.1	5.1	3.6	3.7	3.5
At opening establishments	3,633	3,329	3,309	4,734	2,472	1.2	1.1	1.1	1.6	0.8
Gross job losses	13,344	15,082	14,833	12,409	13,371	4.5	5.0	4.9	4.1	4.4
At contracting establishments	9,768	11,668	10,879	10,373	9,622	3.3	3.9	3.6	3.4	3.2
At closing establishments	3,576	3,414	3,954	2,036	3,749	1.2	1.1	1.3	0.7	1.2
Net employment change (2)	2,415	3,360	-593	3,426	-362	0.8	1.2	-0.2	1.2	-0.1
Professional and business services
Gross job gains	57,360	51,250	53,652	53,342	45,263	7.7	6.9	7.2	7.1	6.1
At expanding establishments	44,882	39,443	43,121	38,873	37,037	6.0	5.3	5.8	5.2	5.0
At opening establishments	12,478	11,807	10,531	14,469	8,226	1.7	1.6	1.4	1.9	1.1
Gross job losses	48,311	58,083	54,502	47,423	49,864	6.5	7.8	7.3	6.3	6.6
At contracting establishments	36,954	48,246	41,873	40,564	36,842	5.0	6.5	5.6	5.4	4.9
At closing establishments	11,357	9,837	12,629	6,859	13,022	1.5	1.3	1.7	0.9	1.7
Net employment change (2)	9,049	-6,833	-850	5,919	-4,601	1.2	-0.9	-0.1	0.8	-0.5
Education and health services
Gross job gains	37,647	34,710	34,219	33,663	31,721	5.9	5.3	5.2	5.1	4.8
At expanding establishments	29,800	27,976	28,200	25,673	27,300	4.7	4.3	4.3	3.9	4.1
At opening establishments	7,847	6,734	6,019	7,990	4,421	1.2	1.0	0.9	1.2	0.7
Gross job losses	25,382	26,861	28,068	24,608	26,914	3.9	4.1	4.3	3.7	4.0
At contracting establishments	19,361	21,530	21,566	20,390	19,443	3.0	3.3	3.3	3.1	2.9
At closing establishments	6,021	5,331	6,502	4,218	7,471	0.9	0.8	1.0	0.6	1.1
Net employment change (2)	12,265	7,849	6,151	9,055	4,807	2.0	1.2	0.9	1.4	0.8
Leisure and hospitality
Gross job gains	51,037	45,315	41,848	49,982	45,688	9.8	8.6	7.9	9.3	8.4
At expanding establishments	39,640	36,347	31,332	39,030	36,623	7.6	6.9	5.9	7.3	6.7
At opening establishments	11,397	8,968	10,516	10,952	9,065	2.2	1.7	2.0	2.0	1.7
Gross job losses	35,388	39,930	48,559	35,706	44,678	6.7	7.5	9.2	6.7	8.2
At contracting establishments	28,903	32,380	39,666	31,498	34,282	5.5	6.1	7.5	5.9	6.3
At closing establishments	6,485	7,550	8,893	4,208	10,396	1.2	1.4	1.7	0.8	1.9
Net employment change (2)	15,649	5,385	-6,711	14,276	1,010	3.1	1.1	-1.3	2.6	0.2
Other services (3)
Gross job gains	10,413	9,462	9,200	10,609	8,135	8.9	8.0	7.7	8.7	6.6
At expanding establishments	7,705	6,857	7,160	7,420	6,560	6.6	5.8	6.0	6.1	5.3
At opening establishments	2,708	2,605	2,040	3,189	1,575	2.3	2.2	1.7	2.6	1.3
Gross job losses	8,359	7,559	8,810	7,500	9,162	7.1	6.4	7.4	6.2	7.5
At contracting establishments	5,852	5,893	6,303	6,301	6,602	5.0	5.0	5.3	5.2	5.4
At closing establishments	2,507	1,666	2,507	1,199	2,560	2.1	1.4	2.1	1.0	2.1
Net employment change (2)	2,054	1,903	390	3,109	-1,027	1.8	1.6	0.3	2.5	-0.9
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.