Global| Dec 08 2015U.S. JOLTS: Job Openings Rate Dips
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
The job openings rate retreated to 3.6% during October from 3.7% in September. The latest figure compared to 3.2% one year earlier but was down from the expansion high of 3.8% reached during July. The private sector job openings rate [...]
The job openings rate retreated to 3.6% during October from 3.7% in September. The latest figure compared to 3.2% one year earlier but was down from the expansion high of 3.8% reached during July. The private sector job openings rate of 3.9% compared to 2.2% in the public sector. The job openings rate is the number of job openings on the last business day of the month as a percent of total employment plus job openings. Employers are having moderate difficulty finding workers. The hires rate held at 3.6% for the fourth straight month, down from the 3.7% high reached in June. The private sector rate of 4.0% compared to 1.6% in the public sector. The hires rate is the number of hires during the month divided by employment. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports these figures in its Job Openings & Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS).
The actual number of job openings fell 2.7% m/m to 5.383 million, reversing most of the prior month's rise. They remained, nevertheless, 11.0% higher versus last year. A 10.1% y/y rise in private sector openings was led by a 27.0% y/y gain in health care & social assistance. That was followed by 26.4% y/y growth in retail trade. Openings in professional & business services increased 10.7% y/y and factory sector openings increased 4.9% y/y. Leisure & hospitality openings improved 1.6% y/y but openings fell 9.4% in construction. In the government sector, job openings increased 21.3% y/y.
The number of hires fell 1.1% m/m to 5.137 million (+0.6% y/y). Private sector hiring eased 0.2% y/y reflecting a 7.3% decline in factory sector employment. A 4.2% y/y shortfall in professional & business services jobs was accompanied by 4.0% y/y fall in retail trade. Offsetting these declines was a 7.4% y/y gain in leisure & hospitality jobs and a 4.8% rise in health care & social assistance. The number of construction sector jobs was unchanged y/y.
The total job separations rate held steady at 3.4% for the fourth straight month, down from a 3.6% March high. The actual number of separations eased 0.9% y/y. Leisure & hospitality separations rose 10.1% y/y and factory sector separations gained 4.7% y/y. These gains were offset by professional & business services where separations fell 8.7% y/y and education & health care separations declined 1.4% y/y. Separations include quits, layoffs, discharges, and other separations as well as retirements.
The layoff & discharge rate eased to 1.2% m/m and y/y. The private sector rate of 1.3% compared to 0.5% in the public sector. Layoffs overall declined 4.3% y/y, down 6.3% y/y in the private sector but up by one-third y/y in the public sector.
The JOLTS survey dates to December 2000 and the figures are available in Haver's USECON database.
| JOLTS (Job Openings & Labor Turnover Survey, SA) | Oct | Sep | Aug | Oct '14 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Job Openings, Total | |||||||
| Rate (%) | 3.6 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 2.8 | 2.6 |
| Total (000s) | 5,383 | 5,534 | 5,377 | 11.0% | 22.6% | 9.3% | 3.2% |
| Hires, Total | |||||||
| Rate (%) | 3.6 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 42.2 | 39.8 | 38.8 |
| Total (000s) | 5,137 | 5,080 | 5,081 | 0.6% | 8.4% | 3.4% | 4.2% |
| Layoffs & Discharges, Total | |||||||
| Rate (%) | 1.2 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 14.5 | 14.6 | 15.5 |
| Total (000s) | 1,670 | 1,786 | 1,725 | 2.2% | 2.4% | -4.9% | 1.1% |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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