U.S. Job Openings Little Changed at 5.4 Million in October

December 8, 2015

Job openings were little changed at 5.4 million on the last business day of October. Hires and separations were also little changed at 5.1 million and 4.9 million, respectively. Within separations, the quits rate was 1.9 percent and the layoffs and discharges rate was 1.2 percent.

JOB OPENINGS AND LABOR TURNOVER – OCTOBER 2015

The number of job openings was little changed at 5.4 million on the last business day of October, the 
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Hires and separations were little changed at 5.1 million 
and 4.9 million, respectively. Within separations, the quits rate was 1.9 percent for the seventh 
consecutive month, and the layoffs and discharges rate was 1.2 percent. This release includes estimates 
of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the nonfarm sector by industry and by 
four geographic regions.

Job Openings

Job openings were little changed at 5.4 million in October. The job openings rate was 3.6 percent. The 
number of job openings was little changed in October for total private and government. Job openings 
decreased in professional and business services (-137,000) and in the West region (-132,000). (See table 
1.)

The number of job openings (not seasonally adjusted) increased over the 12 months ending in October 
for total nonfarm, total private, and government. Job openings rose over the year in health care and 
social assistance (+225,000), retail trade (+141,000), state and local government (+51,000), and federal 
government (+15,000). Job openings decreased over the year in finance and insurance (-55,000) and 
mining and logging (-17,000). The number of job openings increased over the year in 3 out of the 4 
regions—Northeast, South, and Midwest—and was little changed in the West. (See table 7.)

Hires

The number of hires was 5.1 million in October, little changed from September. The hires rate was 3.6 
percent. The number of hires was little changed for total private and government in October. There was 
little change in the number of hires in all industries while hires increased in the West region over the 
month. (See table 2.)

Over the 12 months ending in October, the number of hires (not seasonally adjusted) was little changed 
for total nonfarm and total private, and increased for government. At the industry level, hires increased 
in state and local government (+33,000). The number of hires was little changed in all four regions over 
the year. (See table 8.)

Separations

Total separations includes quits, layoffs and discharges, and other separations. Total separations is 
referred to as turnover. 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, and disability, as well as transfers to other locations of the same firm.

There were 4.9 million total separations in October, little changed from September. The total 
separations rate was 3.4 percent. The number of total separations was little changed for total private and 
rose for government. In October, total separations were little changed in all industries except state and 
local government where the number increased. The number of total separations was essentially 
unchanged in all four regions. (See table 3.)

There were 2.8 million quits in October, little changed from September. The number of quits has held 
between 2.7 million and 2.8 million for the past 14 months. The quits rate remained unchanged in 
October, measuring 1.9 percent for the seventh consecutive month. The number of quits was little 
changed for total private and rose for government over the month. Quits rose in state and local 
government (+19,000) and nondurable goods manufacturing (+17,000), but fell in durable goods 
manufacturing (-15,000). Quits were little changed in all four regions over the month. (See table 4.)

The number of quits (not seasonally adjusted) was little changed over the 12 months ending in October 
for total nonfarm, total private, and government. Quits increased over the year in accommodation and 
food services (+58,000) and nondurable goods manufacturing (+26,000). In the regions, quits rose in the 
Midwest. (See table 10.)

There were 1.7 million layoffs and discharges in October, little changed from September. The layoffs 
and discharges rate was 1.2 percent. The number of layoffs and discharges was little changed over the 
month for total private and edged up for government. Layoffs and discharges were little changed in all 
four regions. (See table 5.) Seasonally adjusted estimates of layoffs and discharges are not available for 
individual industries.

The number of layoffs and discharges (not seasonally adjusted) was little changed over the 12 months 
ending in October for total nonfarm and total private, and rose for government. The number of layoffs 
and discharges rose over the year in state and local government (+30,000) and mining and logging 
(+6,000). The number of layoffs and discharges fell over the year in professional and business services 
(-88,000) and transportation, warehousing, and utilities (-28,000). Layoffs and discharges fell in the 
Midwest over the year. (See table 11.)

In October, there were 414,000 other separations for total nonfarm, little changed from September. 
Over the month, the number of other separations was little changed for total private at 338,000 and for 
government at 76,000. (See table 6.) Seasonally adjusted estimates of other separations are not available 
for individual industries or regions.

Over the 12 months ending in October, the number of other separations (not seasonally adjusted) was 
little changed for total nonfarm, total private, and government. Other separations increased over the year 
in finance and insurance (+22,000), information (+7,000), and federal government (+6,000). The 
number of other separations decreased over the year in wholesale trade (-19,000). Other separations 
were little changed in all four regions over the year. (See table 12.)

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 October 2015, hires totaled 61.0 
million and separations totaled 58.3 million, yielding a net employment gain of 2.7 million. These 
totals include workers who may have been hired and separated more than once during the year.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey results for November 2015 are scheduled to be 
released on Tuesday, January 12, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. (EST).

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