U.S. hiring accelerates as Columbus construction employment surges

U.S. employers added 162,000 jobs in August, a sharp acceleration that beat economists’ expectations and showed continued resilience in the labor market. In Columbus, the latest official figures tell a more uneven story: overall employment was flat from a year earlier in July, but construction-related payrolls were up 13.6%.

The national unemployment rate held at 4.1%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. A Reuters poll had forecast a gain of 56,000 jobs.

Hiring broadens nationally

Restaurants and bars led the August increase with 59,000 jobs. Local-government education added 42,000, construction 22,000, manufacturing 16,000 and health care 13,000. Information employment fell by 23,000, the BLS report said.

The household survey offered another sign of expansion. The labor force grew by 683,000 people, while the labor-force participation rate rose two-tenths of a percentage point to 61.6%. Employment increased by 569,000 under that separate survey.

The stronger-than-expected report shifted financial markets. Treasury yields and the dollar rose after the release, while major stock indexes were little changed in early trading, Reuters reported. July payroll growth was also revised to 21,000 from an initially reported decline of 23,000.

Columbus construction stands out

The latest local snapshot, covering July, shows 1.199 million nonfarm jobs in the Columbus metropolitan area—unchanged from July 2025. The metro unemployment rate was 3.2%, below the national rate, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The local figures are preliminary and not seasonally adjusted.

Construction was the clear bright spot. Employment in mining, logging and construction reached 71,100, an increase of 13.6% over the year. Manufacturing rose 0.5%, leisure and hospitality gained 1.6%, and financial activities edged up 0.4%.

Those gains were offset elsewhere. Professional and business services employment declined 3%, education and health services fell 1.6%, information dropped 3.8%, and government slipped 0.6%. Trade, transportation and utilities—the metro’s largest listed industry group, with 225,800 jobs—was unchanged.

The comparison suggests Columbus entered late summer with powerful demand for construction workers but little net growth across the broader economy. It also shows a different local mix from the national report: health care added jobs across the country in August even as Columbus education and health employment was down over the year through July.

More projects enter the pipeline

Recent expansion plans could reinforce Central Ohio’s strength in construction and manufacturing, although the hiring is expected to unfold over several years.

In an Aug. 24 announcement, the Ohio Department of Development said Westerman expects to add 210 jobs in Bremen by the end of 2030 and 135 in Hebron by the end of 2029. Onda USA expects 100 jobs at a new Delaware manufacturing site by the end of 2029, while John W. Danforth Co. expects 80 jobs at a new Dublin facility by the end of 2030. Burns & McDonnell expects 45 jobs in downtown Columbus by the end of 2029, according to the state announcement.

Other announced projects include 60 new jobs committed by food manufacturer Dupon USA at a Columbus facility, according to JobsOhio, and 90 expected jobs at Cologix data-center sites in Orange Township and Johnstown by the end of 2028, according to a June state announcement.

Together, the figures portray a region with a substantial development pipeline and a pronounced construction boom, even as recent overall job growth remains subdued.