Job Openings and Labor Turnover: October 2004

Historical release narrative reproduced from the official public-domain source. Statistical tables, standard technical appendices, administrative material and attendance rosters are omitted; formatting is adapted for reading. Figures retain the release's historical context and may have been revised. Consult the linked source for the complete document.

The job openings, hires, and total separations rates showed little or no change in October, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. The job openings rate was little changed at 2.5 per- cent. The hires rate was essentially unchanged at 3.3 percent, and the total separations rate was unchanged at 3.2 percent. This release includes estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the total nonfarm sector by industry and geographic region.

Job Openings

On the last business day of October 2004, there were 3.3 million job openings in the United States, and the job openings rate was 2.5 percent. (See table 1.) The job openings rate has generally trended upward since August 2003. In October, the job openings rate dropped in the leisure and hospitality industry and edged up in government.

Hires and Separations

The hires rate (the number of hires during the month divided by employ- ment) was 3.3 percent in October, little changed from a month earlier. (See table 2.) Hires are any additions to the payroll during the month. The hires rate decreased in manufacturing and government and increased in trade, transportation, and utilities over the month.

The total separations, or turnover, rate (the total number of separations during the month divided by employment) was 3.2 percent in October. (See table 3.) The overall total separations rate is 0.3 percentage point higher than its most recent low in November 2003. Separations are terminations of employment that occur at any time during the month. The total separations rate increased in construction and fell in government in October.

Total separations include quits (voluntary separations), layoffs and dis- charges (involuntary separations), and other separations (including retire- ments). The quits rate, which can serve as a barometer of workers' ability to change jobs, was 1.7 percent in October and has been unchanged since February 2004. (See table 4.) The quits rate increased in construction in October. The other two components of total separations, layoffs and dis- charges (1.3 percent) and other separations (0.2 percent) are not seasonally adjusted. Both rates showed little or no change from a year earlier.

Hires and separations help show dynamic flows in the labor market. Over the last 12 months, hires have averaged 4.3 million per month and separations have averaged 4.1 million per month. (See the Technical Note for additional information on these measures.)

For additional information, please see the Technical Note or the JOLTS Web site at www.bls.gov/jlt/. Additional information about JOLTS also may be obtained by e-mailing Joltsinfo@bls.gov or by calling (202) 691-5870.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover release for November 2004 is scheduled to be issued on Wednesday, January 12, 2005.