Us / The “Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey” in charts

The “Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey” tracks the number of job openings and hires in the US, which are fairly obvious indicators of the strength of the labor market. It also tracks an important, if slightly more subtle, indicator: turnover. The BLS calls these “separations,” and the number measures people who’ve quit jobs, been laid of, or otherwise left involuntarily.

The JOLTS numbers released this morning showed “3.9 million job openings on the last business day of September, little changed from August”, and the hiring and separations rates were essentially unchanged as well. More people getting laid off is bad news, of course, but more people quitting their jobs is actually a very good sign. People tend to quit their jobs when they feel more economically secure or positive about the job market.

Here one of four charts from the BLS that put today’s release in context:

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at 

via Four charts from the most important jobs report you aren’t following | Data Dive.