Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey News Release — 2008-11-13

On the last business day of September, there were 3.3 million job openings in the United States, and the job openings rate was 2.3 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. The job openings rate was little changed in September, while the hires rate increased slightly to 3.2 percent, and the total separations rate decreased slightly to 3.0 percent. This release includes estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the total nonfarm sector by industry and geographic region. Although the month-to-month changes in job openings, hires, and turnover data are often small, the trends over time are notable. The job openings rate remained essentially flat from August 2006 through September 2007, followed by a downward trend through September 2008. The hires rate rose in August and September after trending downward from July 2006 through July 2008.