The manufacturing sector had one of the highest number of job openings in June, according to the National Federation of Independent Business June jobs report.
There are numerous manufacturing job openings in Burke County.
MillerKnoll in Hildebran has 29 job openings, according to NCWorks. The openings include senior upholsterer, CNC operators, finishing technician, upholsterer, foam operations technician, furniture fabricator and maintenance.
Valdese Weavers has 15 openings, including industrial electrician maintenance, material handler, inspection clerk, warehouse worker, CDL driver and director of human resources.
Case Farms has 14 openings for jobs, including occupational nurse, general labor, CDL driver, production coordinator, purchasing clerk and refrigeration technician.
Other sectors with the highest number of job openings in June were construction and transportation, according to the National Federation of Independent Business.
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has 64 job openings in Burke County. Those include jobs at Broughton Hospital and J. Iverson Riddle Developmental Center. The jobs include health care technician, program specialist, vocational teacher, housekeeping, advocates, EOC coordinators, certified nursing assistants and activity coordinators.
Retail shops such as Walmart, Dollar Tree, CVS Health and AutoZone also have job openings in Burke County.
MillerKnoll Inc. in Hildebran has 29 job openings as of July 3. The company expanded its business in 2024.
File photo, The News Herald
Food establishments also are hiring, including Cracker Barrel, Chipotle Mexican Grill, McDonald’s, Burger King and Food Lion, in the county.
Burke County saw its unemployment rate rise to 3.7% in May, up from 3.5% in April. It was one of 93 out of the 100 counties in the state that experienced a jobless rate increase in May, according to the North Carolina Department of Commerce.
Of the 39,709 people in the work force in Burke County, 1,483 people are out of work, commerce department figures show.
The Hickory-Lenoir-ɫ metropolitan statistical area saw its rate increase to 3.6% in May, up from 3.4% in April. That means of the 168,962 people in the metro labor force, 6,082 of them are out of work.
The statewide unemployment update for June is expected to be released Friday, July 18.
