Job Openings And Labor Turnover: January 2006 — 2006-03-14

The job openings, hires, and total separations rates were all unchanged in January, 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 indus- try and geographic region. The annual turnover, or separations, rate rose to 41 percent in 2005, up from 37 percent in 2003. On the last business day of January 2006, there were 3.9 million job openings in the United States, and the job openings rate was 2.8 percent. (See table 1.) The job openings rate was unchanged in January but has generally trended upward since September 2003. In January, the job open- ings rate fell in construction. Rates did not change significantly in any geographic region. The hires rate was unchanged at 3.5 percent in January. (See table 2.) Hires are any additions to the payroll during the month.