Job Openings And Labor Turnover: October 2005 — 2005-12-13

The job openings rate increased to 2.9 percent in October, while the total separations rate decreased to 3.1 percent and the hires rate was unchanged at 3.5 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. 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. On the last business day of October 2005, there were 4.0 million job openings in the United States, and the job openings rate was 2.9 percent. (See table 1.) The job openings rate rose over the month, continuing the generally upward trend that began in September 2003. In October, the job openings rate increased for private industries overall and for government. The job openings rate also rose in the professional and business services industry and in the Northeast region. The hires rate was unchanged at 3.5 percent in October.