Job Openings and Labor Turnover: January 2026

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 number of job openings was little changed at 6.9 million in January, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Hires were unchanged at 5.3 million, while total separations changed little at 5.1 million. Within separations, quits (3.1 million) and layoffs and discharges (1.6 million) changed little.

This release includes estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the total nonfarm sector, by industry, by region, and by establishment size class. This release also includes 2025 annual estimates for job openings, hires, and separations. Job openings include all positions that are open on the last business day of the month. Hires and separations include all changes to the payroll during the entire month.

Job Openings

The number and rate of job openings were little changed at 6.9 million and 4.2 percent, respectively, in January. The number of job openings increased in finance and insurance (+184,000). (See table 1.)

Hires

In January, the number and rate of hires were unchanged at 5.3 million and 3.3 percent, respectively. Hires decreased in transportation, warehousing, and utilities (-67,000) and in real estate and rental and leasing (-20,000). (See table 2.)

Separations

Total separations include 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 include separations due to retirement, death, disability, and transfers to other locations of the same firm.

The number and rate of total separations in January were little changed at 5.1 million and 3.2 percent, respectively. The number of total separations decreased in transportation, warehousing, and utilities (-79,000) and in federal government (-10,000). (See table 3.)

In January, the number of quits was little changed at 3.1 million. The quits rate, at 2.0 percent, remained unchanged. The number of quits increased in private educational services (+16,000). (See table 4.)

In January, the number and rate of layoffs and discharges changed little at 1.6 million and 1.0 percent, respectively. Layoffs and discharges decreased in transportation, warehousing, and utilities (-55,000). (See table 5.)

The number of other separations changed little at 337,000 in January. (See table 6.)

Establishment Size Class

In January, establishments with 1 to 9 employees and establishments with 5,000 or more employees showed little or no change in job openings, hires, and separations rates. (See table 7.)

December 2025 Revisions

The number of job openings for December was revised up by 8,000 to 6.6 million, the number of hires was revised down by 21,000 to 5.3 million, and the number of total separations was revised down by 48,000 to 5.2 million. Within separations, the number of quits was revised up by 21,000 to 3.2 million, and the number of layoffs and discharges was revised down by 96,000 to 1.7 million. (Monthly revisions result from additional reports received from businesses and government agencies since the last published estimates and from the recalculation of seasonal factors. The annual revision process also contributed to the December revisions)

Annual Levels and Rates

Consistent with BLS practice, annual estimates are published for not seasonally adjusted data each year with the January news release. For details about how these estimates are calculated, see the technical note.

In 2025, the annual average job openings level was 7.1 million, a decrease of 571,000 from 2024. The annual average job openings rate was 4.3 percent in 2025, compared to 4.6 percent in 2024. (See tables 15 and 16.)

In 2025, the annual hires level was 63.0 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from 2024. Annual total separations decreased by 251,000 in 2025 to 62.8 million. Annual quits decreased by 1.3 million in 2025 to 38.0 million and accounted for 60.6 percent of total separations. Annual layoffs and discharges increased by 1.2 million in 2025 to 21.2 million and accounted for 33.8 percent of total separations. Annual other separations decreased by 224,000 in 2025 to 3.5 million and accounted for 5.6 percent of total separations. (See tables 17 through 26.)

The annual average hires rate for 2025 was 3.3 percent, down from 3.4 percent in 2024. The annual average total separations rate for 2025 was 3.3 percent and was unchanged from 2024. The 2025 annual average rates for the components of total separations were 2.0 percent for quits, 1.1 percent for layoffs and discharges, and 0.2 percent for other separations. (See tables 17 through 26.)

Annual Revisions to Job Openings and Labor Turnover Data

The JOLTS data are revised annually to reflect updates to the Current Employment Statistics (CES) employment estimates. The JOLTS employment levels (not published) are ratio-adjusted to the CES employment levels, and the resulting ratios are applied to all JOLTS data elements. This annual benchmarking process results in revisions to both the seasonally adjusted and not seasonally adjusted JOLTS data series. The seasonally adjusted data are recalculated for the most recent 5 years to reflect updated seasonal adjustment factors. Further, the alignment methodology creates a dependency of the not seasonally adjusted estimates on the seasonal adjustment process. Therefore, the data series that are not seasonally adjusted are also recalculated for the most recent 5 years to reflect the effect of the updated seasonal adjustment factors on the alignment process.

Tables B through G below present revised total nonfarm data for January through December 2025. The December 2025 revisions also reflect the routine incorporation of additional sample receipts into the final December estimates. Tables presenting revisions to JOLTS estimates for January 2021 through December 2025 will be available concurrently with the release on the JOLTS website. The website also contains all revised seasonally adjusted and not seasonally adjusted data. The revision tables and data can be accessed through the JOLTS homepage at www.bls.gov/jlt/.

(p) Preliminary NOTE: Data are revised with the release of January data to incorporate the annual updates to the Current Employment Statistics employment estimates and the JOLTS seasonal adjustment factors.