Job Openings And Labor Turnover: May 2005 — 2005-07-12

The job openings, hires, and total separations rates were all essentially unchanged in May, 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 in- dustry and geographic region. On the last business day of May 2005, there were 3.5 million job openings in the United States, and the job openings rate was 2.5 percent. (See table 1.) The job openings rate was little changed in May, but has generally trended upward since September 2003. In May, the job openings rate decreased in the manufacturing industry and in the Northeast region. The hires rate was little changed at 3.5 percent in May. (See table 2.) Hires are any additions to the payroll during the month.