Job Openings and Labor Turnover: December 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 rate, at 2.5 percent, was up slightly in December, while the hires rate decreased to 3.4 percent and the total separations rate was little changed at 3.2 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This release includes esti- mates 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 December 2004, there were 3.4 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 December, the job openings rate increased for private industries overall, and for the professional and business services and leisure and hospitality industries. The job openings rate rose in the South region, but showed little or no change in the other regions of the country.

Hires and Separations

The hires rate (the number of hires during the month divided by employ- ment) was 3.4 percent in December, a slight decrease from a month earlier. (See table 2.) Hires are any additions to the payroll during the month. The hires rate decreased in manufacturing, professional and business ser- vices, and government over the month. The hires rate also fell in the Mid- west region.

The total separations, or turnover, rate (the total number of separations during the month divided by employment) was 3.2 percent in December. 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. (See table 3.) The total separations rate increased in the trade, transportation, and utilities industry in Decem- ber, but decreased in government.

Total separations include quits (voluntary separations), layoffs and discharges (involuntary separations), and other separations (including retirements). The quits rate, which can serve as a barometer of workers' ability to change jobs, was unchanged at 1.8 percent in December, after holding steady at 1.7 percent from February through October 2004. (See table 4.) The quits rate did not change significantly from November to December for any industry or region. The other two components of total separations, layoffs and discharges (1.4 percent) and other separations (0.2 percent), are not seasonally adjusted. Both rates showed 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 4.4 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 January 2005 is scheduled to be issued on Tuesday, March 15, 2005.