Job Openings and Labor Turnover: February 2011

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.

There were 3.1 million job openings on the last business day of February 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The job openings rate (2.3 percent) increased over the month. The hires rate (3.0 percent) and total separations rate (2.9 percent) were little changed over the month. This release includes estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the total nonfarm sector by industry and by geographic region.

Job Openings The number of job openings in February was 3.1 million, an increase from 2.7 million in January. (See table 1.) The job openings level has trended up since the end of the recession in June 2009 (as designated by the National Bureau of Economic Research) but remains well below the 4.4 million openings when the recession began in December 2007.

The number of job openings in February (not seasonally adjusted) increased from 12 months earlier for total nonfarm, total private, several industries, and the Midwest, Northeast, and South regions. The level decreased over the year for federal government. (See table 5.)

Hires In February, the hires rate was essentially unchanged for total nonfarm, total private, and government. The number of hires was little changed in every industry and decreased in the West region. (See table 2.) At 3.9 million, the number of hires in February was below the 5.0 million hires in December 2007 when the recession began.

Over the 12 months ending in February, the hires rate (not seasonally adjusted) was little changed for total nonfarm, total private, government, most industries, and all regions. The hires rate fell over the year for federal government. (See table 6.)

Separations Total separations includes quits (voluntary separations), layoffs and discharges (involuntary separations), and other separations (including retirements). The total separations, or turnover, rate was little changed at 2.9 percent for total nonfarm in February. Over the 12 months ending in February, the total separations rate (not seasonally adjusted) was essentially unchanged for total nonfarm, total private, and government. (See tables 3 and 7.)

The quits rate can serve as a measure of workers’ willingness or ability to change jobs. In February, the quits rate increased for total nonfarm and total private but was unchanged for government. The quits rate increased in retail trade and all four regions. (See table 4.) The 1.9 million quits in February remains well below the 2.8 million quits in December 2007 when the recession began.

The number of quits (not seasonally adjusted) in February increased over the year for total nonfarm and total private but was little changed for government. The number of quits increased for professional and business services. (See table 8.)

The layoffs and discharges component of total separations is seasonally adjusted at the total nonfarm, total private, and government levels. The layoffs and discharges rate was essentially unchanged in February for total nonfarm, total private, and government. (See table B below.) After peaking at 2.5 million in February 2009, the number of layoffs and discharges for total nonfarm fell to a series low of 1.5 million in January 2011.

The layoffs and discharges level (not seasonally adjusted) was little changed over the 12 months ending in February for total nonfarm, total private, and government as well as all industries and three regions; layoffs and discharges declined in the Midwest over the year. (See table 9.)

The other separations series is not seasonally adjusted. In February, there were 292,000 other separations for total nonfarm, 255,000 for total private, and 37,000 for government. Compared to February 2010, the number of other separations was little changed for total nonfarm, total private, and government. (See table 10.)

Relative Contributions to Separations The total separations level is influenced by the relative contribution of its three components—quits, layoffs and discharges, and other separations. The percentage of total separations at the total nonfarm level attributable to the individual components has varied over time, but for the majority of the months since the series began in December 2000, the proportion of quits has exceeded the proportion of layoffs and discharges. Other separations is historically a very small portion of total separations; it has rarely been above 10 percent of the total.

Over the last several months, the proportions of quits and of layoffs and discharges at the total nonfarm level have diverged, returning to their historical pattern. In February, the proportion of quits for total nonfarm was 51 percent and the proportion of layoffs and discharges was 42 percent. The proportion of quits for total private was 52 percent and the proportion of layoffs and discharges was 42 percent. For government, the proportions were 41 percent quits and 40 percent layoffs and discharges. (See table C below.)

Net Change in Employment Over the 12 months ending in February, hires (not seasonally adjusted) totaled 47.6 million and separations (not seasonally adjusted) totaled 46.4 million, a net employment gain of 1.2 million at the total nonfarm level. These figures include workers who may have been hired and separated more than once during the year. Nearly half of the hires and nearly half of the separations during these 12 months occurred in three industries: retail trade; professional and business services; and accommodation and food services. The large share of total hires and separations accounted for by these three industries reflects the size of the industries as well as their relatively high hires and separations rates.