Spring 2024 Hiring Among Oregon’s Private Employers

July 25, 2024

Each quarter, the Oregon Employment Department surveys private employers from all industries and areas of the state to ask about the job vacancies they are actively trying to fill. Oregon businesses reported 57,700 vacancies in spring 2024. Vacancies decreased 4% from the winter and decreased 17% from spring 2023. The number of vacancies is close to levels seen prior to the pandemic, after reaching elevated levels of close to 100,000 job vacancies in spring 2021 through summer 2022 in the rapid hiring following pandemic re-openings.

The number of private-sector job openings in the U.S. peaked at 11.4 million in April 2022. Since spring of 2021, openings have significantly exceeded the previous high of 7.0 million seen in April 2019. As of April 2024, there were 7.6 million private-sector job openings in the United States, as measured by the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, and 5.9 million people were unemployed, resulting in a U.S. ratio of 0.8 unemployed people per job opening (or eight unemployed persons per 10 job openings). This is the 12th straight quarter at or below a ratio of 1.0.

In April 2024, there were 79,100 unemployed Oregonians and the number of job vacancies was 57,700, leaving 1.4 unemployed persons for every job opening. As job vacancies in Oregon have fallen since the record high peaks and unemployment has continued at a low level since late 2021, Oregon’s unemployed-to-job vacancy ratio has been slowly increasing. Although, from winter 2024 to spring 2024, Oregon’s ratio did decline slightly.

Most openings in the spring were for full-time, permanent positions. Education beyond high school was required for 39% of spring vacancies. Prior work experience was required for 57% of vacancies, down from 62% in spring 2023. Employers reported a majority of their vacancies as difficult to fill, accounting for 55% of vacancies in spring 2024, down from 59% in spring 2023.

The average starting wage among this group of vacancies was $26.07 per hour, an inflation-adjusted decrease of 8% from spring 2023 and a 10% increase from winter 2024. Overall, vacancies decreased 17% from spring 2023. The number of vacancies offering a starting wage below $20 per hour decreased 19% over the year. The number of vacancies offering between $20 and $30 per hour increased 3%, and vacancies paying above $30 per hour decreased 39%.

Hiring demand was widespread throughout industries and occupations. Thirteen out of 14 major sectors were hiring for more than 1,000 positions at any given time in spring 2024. Health care and social assistance had the most vacancies of any industry, with 13,800 vacancies. Manufacturing and leisure and hospitality both followed, with 6,700 and 6,400 job vacancies, respectively.

Employers reported vacancies in 220 different occupations. The occupation groups with the most vacancies in spring 2024 were health care support (6,700), food preparation and serving related (4,700), and sales and related (4,700). Detailed occupations reported most frequently included personal care aides, fast food and counter workers, and cashiers.

Spring vacancies were distributed across the state, with the Portland tri-county area accounting for about 41%. Vacancies decreased over the year in every region of the state, except in the Clackamas and Mid-Valley areas of Oregon.

More details about Oregon Job Vacancies are available on QualityInfo.org, on the publications page under Job Vacancy Survey.