BLS Report: March job openings and quits reach series highs; total separations edge up

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Related:

Wed Jan 27, 2021: BLS Report: Gross job losses 20.4 million and gross job gains 5.7 million in the 2nd quarter of 2020

People come; people go.

This is JOLTS, the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. It comes out a few days after the monthly payroll employment report.

The number of quits indicates how confident people are of finding another job if they leave the one they have.

Previous reports:

Tue Mar 29, 2022: BLS Report: February job openings and total separations change little; hires edge up

Wed Mar 9, 2022: BLS Report: January job openings, hires, and total separations change little

Tue Feb 9, 2021: BLS Report: Job openings and total separations little changed in December; hires decrease

Tue Jan 4, 2022: Job openings reach 10.6 million in November as tight labor market persists

Wed Dec 8, 2021: BLS Report: October job openings increase, total separations edge down, and hires change little

Fri Nov 12, 2021: BLS Report: September job openings and hires little changed, quits at a series high

Tue Oct 12, 2021: BLS Report: August job openings and hires decrease; total separations little changed

Wed Sep 8, 2021: BLS Report: July job openings increase to series high; hires and total separations little changed

Mon Aug 9, 2021: BLS Report: June job openings increase to series high; hires increase and total separations edge up

Wed Jul 7, 2021: BLS Report: May job openings and hires little changed; total separations decrease

Tue Jun 8, 2021: BLS Report: April job openings reach series high; total separations increase and hires little change

Tue May 11, 2021: BLS Report: March job openings reach a series high; hires and total separations little changed

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March job openings and quits reach series highs; total separations edge up

Economic News Release USDL-22-0785

Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary
For release 10:00 a.m. (ET) Tuesday, May 3, 2022
Technical information: [phone] • [e-mail] • www.bls.gov/jlt
Media contact: [phone] • [e-mail]

JOB OPENINGS AND LABOR TURNOVER – MARCH 2022

The number of job openings was at a series high of 11.5 million on the last business day of March, although little changed over the month, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Hires, at 6.7 million, were also little changed while total separations edged up to 6.3 million. Within separations, quits edged up to a series high of 4.5 million, while layoffs and discharges were little changed at 1.4 million. This release includes estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the total nonfarm sector, by industry, by four geographic regions, and by establishment size class.

Job Openings

On the last business day of March, the number of job openings was little changed at 11.5 million, the highest level in the history of the series which began in December 2000. Over the month, the job openings rate was little changed at 7.1 percent. Job openings increased in retail trade (+155,000) and in durable goods manufacturing (+50,000). Job openings decreased in transportation, warehousing, and utilities (-69,000); state and local government education (-43,000); and federal government (-20,000). Job openings increased in the South region. (See table 1.)

Hires

In March, the number of hires was little changed at 6.7 million. The hires rate was unchanged at 4.5 percent. Hires were little changed in all industries and in all four regions. (See table 2.)

Separations

Total separations includes quits, layoffs and discharges, and other separations. Quits are generally voluntary separations initiated by the employee. Therefore, the quits rate can serve as a measure of workers’ willingness or ability to leave jobs. Layoffs and discharges are involuntary separations initiated by the employer. Other separations includes separations due to retirement, death, disability, and transfers to other locations of the same firm.

In March, the number of total separations edged up to 6.3 million (+239,000). The rate was little changed at 4.2 percent. Total separations were little changed in all industries. The number of total separations increased in the South region. (See table 3.)

In March, the number of quits edged up to a series high of 4.5 million (+152,000). The rate was little changed at 3.0 percent. Quits increased in professional and business services (+88,000) and construction (+69,000). The number of quits increased in the South region. (See table 4.)

In March, the number of layoffs and discharges was little changed at 1.4 million. The rate was unchanged at 0.9 percent. Layoffs and discharges were little changed in all industries and in all four regions. (See table 5.)

The number of other separations was little changed in March at 380,000. Other separations increased in construction (+12,000); transportation, warehousing, and utilities (+11,000); wholesale trade (+10,000); and educational services (+4,000). The other separations level decreased in information (-6,000). Other separations were little changed in all four regions. (See table 6.)

Net Change in Employment

Large numbers of hires and separations occur every month throughout the business cycle. Net employment change results from the relationship between hires and separations. When the number of hires exceeds the number of separations, employment rises, even if the hires level is steady or declining. Conversely, when the number of hires is less than the number of separations, employment declines, even if the hires level is steady or rising.

Over the 12 months ending in March, hires totaled 77.7 million and separations totaled 71.4 million, yielding a net employment gain of 6.3 million. These totals include workers who may have been hired and separated more than once during the year.

Establishment Size Class

In March, the job openings rate increased in establishments with 50 to 249 employees and establishments with 250 to 999 employees. The job openings rate decreased in establishments with 10 to 49 employees. The quits rate decreased in establishments with 1,000 to 4,999 employees. The total separations rate increased in establishments with 250 to 999 employees. For a more in-depth description of the JOLTS establishment size class estimates, please visit www.bls.gov/jlt/sizeclassmethodology.htm.

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The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey estimates for April 2022 are scheduled to be released on Wednesday, June 1, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. (ET).

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[mahatmakanejeeves]

1. US job openings rose to a record 11.549 million in March

Yahoo Finance

US job openings rose to a record 11.549 million in March

Emily McCormick · Reporter
Tue, May 3, 2022, 10:00 AM · 3 min read

U.S. job openings rose to a record level in March, with labor demand still outpacing supply across many firms throughout the country. ... Job openings increased to 11.549 million in March, the Labor Department said in its Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary (JOLTS) on Tuesday. Job openings had totaled 11.344 million in February, according to the revised monthly print. Consensus economists were looking for job openings to decline to 11.200 million for March, according to Bloomberg data.

The number of vacancies across the U.S. economy has far outpaced the number of hires, which were little changed month-on-month at 6.7 million in March. And the number of quits also edged up to a record high of 4.5 million, with the quits rate hovering little changed at 3.0%.

By industry, job openings rose significantly among retail trade employers, with vacancies increasing by 155,000 month-on-month. Durable goods manufacturing industries also saw vacancies rise by 50,000 in March. On the other hand, vacancies decreased by 69,000 in transportation, warehousing and utilities industries, and by 43,000 in state and local government education.

Job openings across the board, however, remain well above pre-pandemic levels, as vacancies were averaging around just 7.1 million per month throughout 2019. And these openings have remained even as firms have brought back workers at rates well above pre-virus levels for much of the past year.

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