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BLS - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

11/04/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 11/04/2026 14:10

Business Employment Dynamics in Alabama — First Quarter 2026

News Release Information

26-1676-ATL
Wednesday, November 04, 2026

From December 2025 to March 2026, gross job gains from opening and expandingprivate-sector establishments in Alabama were 94,549, while gross job losses from closing and contracting private-sector establishments were 90,811, 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 3,738 jobs in the private sector during the first quarter of 2026. (See table 1.) During the previous quarter, gross job gains exceeded gross job losses by 10,599. (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.)

Period Gross job gains Gross job losses

Mar 2021

106,296 92,237

Jun 2021

100,519 93,934

Sep 2021

107,073 100,426

Dec 2021

122,375 84,705

Mar 2022

106,015 97,207

Jun 2022

108,942 102,288

Sep 2022

115,054 97,194

Dec 2022

110,803 101,251

Mar 2023

109,874 93,697

Jun 2023

102,737 96,465

Sep 2023

102,548 100,819

Dec 2023

105,135 98,091

Mar 2024

101,259 95,825

Jun 2024

96,009 94,981

Sep 2024

99,271 101,415

Dec 2024

98,714 92,090

Mar 2025

93,945 94,353

Jun 2025

94,816 96,413

Sep 2025

94,056 94,457

Dec 2025

102,508 91,909

Mar 2026

94,549 90,811

View Chart Data

Gross job gains

In the first quarter of 2026, gross job gains represented 5.5 percent of private-sector employment in Alabama and nationally. (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 Alabama, gross job gains at expanding establishments totaled 77,175 in the first quarter of 2026, a decrease of 5,715 jobs compared to the previous quarter. Opening establishments accounted for 17,374 jobs gained in the first quarter of 2026, a decrease of 2,244 jobs from the previous quarter.

Period United States Alabama

Mar 2021

7.0 6.7

Jun 2021

6.8 6.3

Sep 2021

7.3 6.7

Dec 2021

7.7 7.5

Mar 2022

6.7 6.4

Jun 2022

6.6 6.6

Sep 2022

6.9 6.9

Dec 2022

6.3 6.6

Mar 2023

6.3 6.5

Jun 2023

6.2 6.0

Sep 2023

5.9 6.0

Dec 2023

5.9 6.2

Mar 2024

5.9 5.9

Jun 2024

5.8 5.6

Sep 2024

5.8 5.8

Dec 2024

5.9 5.8

Mar 2025

5.7 5.5

Jun 2025

5.7 5.5

Sep 2025

5.7 5.5

Dec 2025

6.0 5.9

Mar 2026

5.5 5.5

View Chart Data

Gross job losses

In the first quarter of 2026, gross job losses represented 5.2 percent of private-sector employment in Alabama; nationally, gross job losses accounted for 5.5 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 Alabama, contracting establishments lost 74,919 jobs in the first quarter of 2026, an increase of 4 jobs from the prior quarter. Closing establishments lost 15,892 jobs, a decrease of 1,102 jobs from the previous quarter.

Period United States Alabama

Mar 2021

5.5 5.8

Jun 2021

5.9 6.0

Sep 2021

6.0 6.3

Dec 2021

5.4 5.2

Mar 2022

5.5 5.9

Jun 2022

6.2 6.2

Sep 2022

5.9 5.8

Dec 2022

5.9 6.1

Mar 2023

5.5 5.6

Jun 2023

5.9 5.7

Sep 2023

5.9 6.0

Dec 2023

5.7 5.8

Mar 2024

5.5 5.6

Jun 2024

5.9 5.6

Sep 2024

5.8 5.9

Dec 2024

5.7 5.3

Mar 2025

5.5 5.5

Jun 2025

6.0 5.6

Sep 2025

5.7 5.5

Dec 2025

5.5 5.3

Mar 2026

5.5 5.2

View Chart Data

Industries

Gross job gains exceeded gross job losses in 7 of the 10 published industry sectors in Alabama in the first quarter of 2026. Construction had the largest over-the-quarter net job increase, with a gain of 2,159 jobs. This was the result of 10,439 gross job gains and 8,280 gross job losses. The education and health services industry had a net gain of 1,642 jobs, followed by the retail trade industry with a net gain of 1,527 jobs. Transportation and warehousing showed a net loss of 1,255 jobs, the largest loss of any sector in the state.

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 2026 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, January 27, 2027, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

Revisions to Business Employment Dynamics (BED) Data

Data in this release contain annual revisions in accordance with standard procedures. These revisions include the previous four quarters of not seasonally adjusted data and five years of seasonally adjusted data.


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.

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

Category Gross job gains and losses
(3 months ended)
Gross job gains and losses
as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Mar.
2025
June
2025
Sept.
2025
Dec.
2025
Mar.
2026
Mar.
2025
June
2025
Sept.
2025
Dec.
2025
Mar.
2026

Total private

Gross job gains

93,945 94,816 94,056 102,508 94,549 5.5 5.5 5.5 5.9 5.5

At expanding establishments

75,269 76,053 75,157 82,890 77,175 4.4 4.4 4.4 4.8 4.5

At opening establishments

18,676 18,763 18,899 19,618 17,374 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.0

Gross job losses

94,353 96,413 94,457 91,909 90,811 5.5 5.6 5.5 5.3 5.2

At contracting establishments

77,676 77,771 80,221 74,915 74,919 4.5 4.5 4.7 4.3 4.3

At closing establishments

16,677 18,642 14,236 16,994 15,892 1.0 1.1 0.8 1.0 0.9

Net employment change

-408 -1,597 -401 10,599 3,738 0.0 -0.1 0.0 0.6 0.3

Construction

Gross job gains

8,666 9,321 8,887 9,082 10,439 8.0 8.5 8.0 8.2 9.3

At expanding establishments

7,053 7,636 7,411 7,647 8,666 6.5 7.0 6.7 6.9 7.7

At opening establishments

1,613 1,685 1,476 1,435 1,773 1.5 1.5 1.3 1.3 1.6

Gross job losses

8,288 7,496 8,551 7,669 8,280 7.6 6.9 7.8 6.9 7.3

At contracting establishments

6,771 6,011 7,477 6,252 6,905 6.2 5.5 6.8 5.6 6.1

At closing establishments

1,517 1,485 1,074 1,417 1,375 1.4 1.4 1.0 1.3 1.2

Net employment change

378 1,825 336 1,413 2,159 0.4 1.6 0.2 1.3 2.0

Manufacturing

Gross job gains

7,941 6,943 6,337 7,901 6,706 2.7 2.4 2.2 2.8 2.4

At expanding establishments

7,276 5,999 5,466 7,241 5,978 2.5 2.1 1.9 2.6 2.1

At opening establishments

665 944 871 660 728 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.3

Gross job losses

7,674 7,557 8,380 6,978 6,966 2.7 2.7 3.0 2.5 2.5

At contracting establishments

7,131 7,095 7,545 6,260 6,489 2.5 2.5 2.7 2.2 2.3

At closing establishments

543 462 835 718 477 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.2

Net employment change

267 -614 -2,043 923 -260 0.0 -0.3 -0.8 0.3 -0.1

Wholesale trade

Gross job gains

3,470 3,161 3,243 3,718 3,089 4.3 4.0 4.2 4.7 3.9

At expanding establishments

2,721 2,453 2,638 2,938 2,523 3.4 3.1 3.4 3.7 3.2

At opening establishments

749 708 605 780 566 0.9 0.9 0.8 1.0 0.7

Gross job losses

3,597 3,421 3,620 3,344 3,001 4.5 4.3 4.6 4.3 3.8

At contracting establishments

2,698 2,853 3,020 2,334 2,423 3.4 3.6 3.8 3.0 3.1

At closing establishments

899 568 600 1,010 578 1.1 0.7 0.8 1.3 0.7

Net employment change

-127 -260 -377 374 88 -0.2 -0.3 -0.4 0.4 0.1

Retail trade

Gross job gains

12,499 13,719 12,186 11,267 12,759 5.3 5.7 5.1 4.7 5.3

At expanding establishments

10,689 11,642 10,351 9,419 10,879 4.5 4.8 4.3 3.9 4.5

At opening establishments

1,810 2,077 1,835 1,848 1,880 0.8 0.9 0.8 0.8 0.8

Gross job losses

11,583 12,958 12,415 13,885 11,232 4.8 5.4 5.2 5.8 4.7

At contracting establishments

9,837 10,823 10,836 11,633 9,756 4.1 4.5 4.5 4.9 4.1

At closing establishments

1,746 2,135 1,579 2,252 1,476 0.7 0.9 0.7 0.9 0.6

Net employment change

916 761 -229 -2,618 1,527 0.5 0.3 -0.1 -1.1 0.6

Transportation and warehousing

Gross job gains

3,546 3,749 3,985 6,395 3,713 4.7 5.1 5.5 8.7 5.0

At expanding establishments

2,854 2,924 3,380 5,426 2,945 3.8 4.0 4.7 7.4 4.0

At opening establishments

692 825 605 969 768 0.9 1.1 0.8 1.3 1.0

Gross job losses

6,305 4,347 4,504 4,075 4,968 8.4 5.9 6.2 5.6 6.8

At contracting establishments

5,562 3,368 4,091 3,429 4,451 7.4 4.6 5.6 4.7 6.1

At closing establishments

743 979 413 646 517 1.0 1.3 0.6 0.9 0.7

Net employment change

-2,759 -598 -519 2,320 -1,255 -3.7 -0.8 -0.7 3.1 -1.8

Financial activities

Gross job gains

5,039 4,782 4,643 5,621 5,859 4.9 4.7 4.5 5.5 5.6

At expanding establishments

3,971 3,563 3,200 4,086 4,679 3.9 3.5 3.1 4.0 4.5

At opening establishments

1,068 1,219 1,443 1,535 1,180 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.5 1.1

Gross job losses

4,704 4,898 4,377 4,882 5,483 4.6 4.8 4.3 4.8 5.3

At contracting establishments

3,550 3,630 3,572 3,899 3,521 3.5 3.6 3.5 3.8 3.4

At closing establishments

1,154 1,268 805 983 1,962 1.1 1.2 0.8 1.0 1.9

Net employment change

335 -116 266 739 376 0.3 -0.1 0.2 0.7 0.3

Professional and business services

Gross job gains

16,933 18,998 18,367 18,380 17,041 6.4 7.2 7.0 7.0 6.4

At expanding establishments

13,193 15,812 14,394 14,968 13,774 5.0 6.0 5.5 5.7 5.2

At opening establishments

3,740 3,186 3,973 3,412 3,267 1.4 1.2 1.5 1.3 1.2

Gross job losses

17,362 18,140 18,564 18,181 16,993 6.7 6.9 7.0 6.9 6.4

At contracting establishments

14,032 15,453 15,836 14,750 13,525 5.4 5.9 6.0 5.6 5.1

At closing establishments

3,330 2,687 2,728 3,431 3,468 1.3 1.0 1.0 1.3 1.3

Net employment change

-429 858 -197 199 48 -0.3 0.3 0.0 0.1 0.0

Education and health services

Gross job gains

13,930 11,590 11,970 12,757 12,446 5.4 4.5 4.7 5.1 4.8

At expanding establishments

10,540 8,716 9,361 9,534 10,350 4.1 3.4 3.7 3.8 4.0

At opening establishments

3,390 2,874 2,609 3,223 2,096 1.3 1.1 1.0 1.3 0.8

Gross job losses

11,345 15,326 11,545 11,536 10,804 4.4 6.0 4.6 4.6 4.3

At contracting establishments

9,025 10,033 9,283 8,854 8,325 3.5 3.9 3.7 3.5 3.3

At closing establishments

2,320 5,293 2,262 2,682 2,479 0.9 2.1 0.9 1.1 1.0

Net employment change

2,585 -3,736 425 1,221 1,642 1.0 -1.5 0.1 0.5 0.5

Leisure and hospitality

Gross job gains

16,173 16,877 18,011 20,486 16,497 7.5 7.9 8.4 9.4 7.5

At expanding establishments

12,679 12,852 14,073 15,919 12,976 5.9 6.0 6.6 7.3 5.9

At opening establishments

3,494 4,025 3,938 4,567 3,521 1.6 1.9 1.8 2.1 1.6

Gross job losses

16,953 16,405 16,611 15,542 16,887 7.9 7.7 7.7 7.2 7.7

At contracting establishments

13,864 14,102 13,763 12,980 14,503 6.5 6.6 6.4 6.0 6.6

At closing establishments

3,089 2,303 2,848 2,562 2,384 1.4 1.1 1.3 1.2 1.1

Net employment change

-780 472 1,400 4,944 -390 -0.4 0.2 0.7 2.2 -0.2

Other services

Gross job gains

3,289 3,177 3,688 3,500 3,672 6.8 6.6 7.6 7.2 7.5

At expanding establishments

2,557 2,412 2,807 2,781 2,849 5.3 5.0 5.8 5.7 5.8

At opening establishments

732 765 881 719 823 1.5 1.6 1.8 1.5 1.7

Gross job losses

3,344 3,333 3,423 3,368 3,310 6.8 6.9 7.1 6.9 6.8

At contracting establishments

2,600 2,529 2,758 2,536 2,717 5.3 5.2 5.7 5.2 5.6

At closing establishments

744 804 665 832 593 1.5 1.7 1.4 1.7 1.2

Net employment change

-55 -156 265 132 362 0.0 -0.3 0.5 0.3 0.7
Category Gross job gains as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Gross job losses as a percent of employment
(3 months ended)
Mar.
2025
June
2025
Sept.
2025
Dec.
2025
Mar.
2026
Mar.
2025
June
2025
Sept.
2025
Dec.
2025
Mar.
2026

United States

5.7 5.7 5.7 6.0 5.5 5.5 6.0 5.7 5.5 5.5

Alabama

5.5 5.5 5.5 5.9 5.5 5.5 5.6 5.5 5.3 5.2

Alaska

10.4 10.0 7.4 11.9 9.6 8.3 9.9 10.0 9.4 9.4

Arizona

5.8 5.2 5.6 5.7 5.7 5.3 6.2 5.3 5.4 5.6

Arkansas

5.1 5.1 5.4 6.0 5.3 5.1 5.6 5.4 5.3 5.4

California

6.1 6.4 6.3 6.9 6.3 6.4 6.7 6.1 6.1 6.0

Colorado

6.4 6.5 6.5 6.3 6.0 6.6 6.7 6.4 6.2 6.5

Connecticut

5.7 5.8 5.4 5.5 5.3 5.2 5.7 5.7 5.5 5.4

Delaware

6.0 6.0 5.3 5.5 5.5 5.4 6.1 6.0 5.6 5.4

District of Columbia

4.9 5.7 4.6 5.5 5.0 5.8 6.1 6.0 5.1 4.9

Florida

5.8 5.7 6.0 5.9 5.3 5.5 5.8 5.9 5.6 5.5

Georgia

5.6 5.5 5.7 5.9 5.3 5.7 5.6 5.7 5.4 5.5

Hawaii

5.2 4.9 5.2 5.1 5.0 5.2 5.2 4.8 4.7 5.1

Idaho

7.5 7.6 6.7 8.0 7.7 7.3 7.1 7.6 6.3 7.0

Illinois

5.0 5.2 4.7 5.3 5.1 5.0 5.1 5.0 5.3 5.0

Indiana

5.4 5.1 5.1 5.5 4.9 5.1 5.4 5.1 5.1 5.1

Iowa

6.0 5.5 4.8 6.2 6.0 5.6 5.8 5.9 5.4 5.4

Kansas

5.5 5.4 5.8 5.8 5.4 5.4 6.3 5.8 5.4 5.3

Kentucky

5.3 5.0 5.3 5.3 5.2 4.9 5.3 5.6 5.1 5.3

Louisiana

5.8 5.6 6.0 6.0 5.7 5.7 6.2 5.9 5.9 5.4

Maine

7.3 7.1 6.4 6.8 6.4 6.4 7.3 7.0 7.0 6.3

Maryland

5.9 5.7 5.8 6.1 5.6 5.8 6.6 6.3 5.5 6.0

Massachusetts

5.0 5.5 5.3 5.4 5.2 5.1 5.7 5.9 5.5 5.3

Michigan

5.3 5.8 4.9 5.6 5.4 5.3 5.4 5.9 5.3 4.9

Minnesota

5.1 5.8 5.3 5.5 5.2 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.5 5.6

Mississippi

6.0 6.2 6.4 6.4 5.7 6.1 6.2 6.0 5.9 6.3

Missouri

5.4 5.6 5.7 6.2 5.6 5.2 6.1 5.9 5.4 5.3

Montana

8.0 7.7 7.1 8.4 7.8 7.6 8.3 7.9 7.4 7.0

Nebraska

5.3 5.4 5.6 5.7 5.4 5.3 5.5 6.0 5.3 5.4

Nevada

5.4 6.1 6.9 6.4 5.7 5.9 6.3 5.3 5.4 5.7

New Hampshire

6.6 6.3 5.6 6.3 6.1 6.1 6.7 6.8 5.7 6.3

New Jersey

5.4 5.7 5.3 5.8 5.3 5.5 5.6 5.8 5.4 5.5

New Mexico

6.1 6.0 6.1 6.3 6.0 5.8 6.0 6.4 6.0 5.9

New York

7.0 6.1 5.9 5.6 5.4 5.2 7.0 5.7 5.5 5.2

North Carolina

5.6 5.7 5.4 6.0 5.8 5.5 5.4 5.7 5.0 5.3

North Dakota

6.7 6.4 6.2 6.9 6.8 6.5 6.8 6.6 6.4 6.7

Ohio

5.2 5.3 5.2 5.3 5.2 4.9 5.4 5.3 5.0 5.1

Oklahoma

5.5 5.6 6.0 6.2 5.3 5.3 6.2 6.3 5.3 5.3

Oregon

6.1 6.1 5.7 5.9 5.7 6.1 6.4 6.6 6.0 5.9

Pennsylvania

5.0 4.9 5.0 5.1 4.7 4.7 5.1 5.1 4.7 4.8

Rhode Island

6.6 6.3 6.0 6.6 5.8 5.9 6.7 6.6 6.2 6.0

South Carolina

6.1 5.9 6.3 6.6 6.0 5.6 6.1 6.1 5.5 5.7

South Dakota

6.3 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.0 6.9 6.4 6.0 5.9 6.1

Tennessee

5.5 5.3 5.8 6.0 5.4 5.3 6.5 5.5 5.3 4.9

Texas

5.1 5.2 5.3 5.8 5.4 5.1 5.3 5.2 4.9 5.4

Utah

6.8 6.9 6.9 6.6 6.4 6.2 6.8 6.5 6.2 6.1

Vermont

7.0 6.9 6.7 7.0 6.6 6.8 7.4 7.7 7.0 6.5

Virginia

5.6 5.9 5.8 5.8 5.5 5.2 5.8 6.1 5.2 5.4

Washington

5.7 6.0 5.2 5.6 5.7 6.0 5.9 6.0 5.7 5.5

West Virginia

6.7 5.6 6.1 6.1 6.4 5.9 6.4 6.2 6.2 5.4

Wisconsin

5.1 5.3 4.9 5.5 5.4 5.0 5.4 5.6 5.1 4.9

Wyoming

8.1 8.3 7.7 9.0 8.8 8.8 8.9 8.4 8.0 8.2

Puerto Rico

6.5 7.0 5.2 4.6 4.6 5.2 6.0 5.4 5.3 4.6

Virgin Islands

6.1 11.9 6.9 8.4 7.3 8.8 9.2 7.5 5.7 7.1
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