Job openings and hiring were nearly unchanged in July, according to the Labor Department’s latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS report. The data offers further evidence that the US labor market remains in a “low hire, low fire” mode.
Employers reported approximately 7.3 million job openings in July, up slightly from a revised 7.2 million in June.
Hiring and layoffs remain subdued
Hiring also held relatively steady. About 5.1 million workers started new jobs in July, down from 5.3 million in June as the professional and business services sector shed jobs. The hiring rate was 3.2%.
Layoffs declined slightly to 1.7 million, while the layoff rate fell to 1.1%. The quits rate, which indicates how willing workers are to leave their jobs, stood at 1.9%.
The US labor market has experienced weak hiring but relatively few layoffs this year, encouraging many employees to remain in their current positions. The Bureau of Labor Statistics is scheduled to release another view of labor market conditions on Friday with its August employment report.
July’s employment report showed that the US unexpectedly lost 23,000 jobs. The unemployment rate declined as more workers became discouraged and stopped looking for new roles.
Claire Boston is a Senior Reporter for Yahoo Finance covering housing, mortgages, and home insurance.
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