For release 10:00 a.m. (EST) Tuesday, February 6, 2018	USDL-18-0204

Technical information:  (202) 691-5870  •  JoltsInfo@bls.gov  •  www.bls.gov/jlt
Media contact:          (202) 691-5902  •  PressOffice@bls.gov

                         JOB OPENINGS AND LABOR TURNOVER – DECEMBER 2017

The number of job openings was little changed at 5.8 million on the last business day of December, the 
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the month, hires and separations were little 
changed at 5.5 million and 5.2 million, respectively. Within separations, the quits rate and the layoffs 
and discharges rate were little changed at 2.2 percent and 1.1 percent, respectively. This release includes 
estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the nonfarm sector by 
industry and by four geographic regions.

Job Openings

On the last business day of December, there were 5.8 million job openings, little changed from 
November. The job openings rate was 3.8 percent in December. The number of job openings was little 
changed for total private and for government. Job openings increased in information (+33,000) and 
federal government (+13,000). Job openings decreased in a number of industries with the largest 
decreases occurring in professional and business services (-119,000), retail trade (-85,000), and 
construction (-52,000). The number of job openings was little changed in all four regions. (See table 1.)

Hires

The number of hires was little changed at 5.5 million in December. The hires rate was 3.7 percent. The 
number of hires was little changed for total private, for government, and in all industries and regions. 
(See table 2.)

Separations

Total separations includes quits, layoffs and discharges, and other separations. Total separations is 
referred to as turnover. Quits are generally voluntary separations initiated by the employee. Therefore, 
the quits rate can serve as a measure of workers’ willingness or ability to leave jobs. Layoffs and 
discharges are involuntary separations initiated by the employer. Other separations includes separations 
due to retirement, death, disability, and transfers to other locations of the same firm.

The number of total separations was little changed at 5.2 million in December. The total separations 
rate was 3.6 percent. The number of total separations was little changed for total private and for 
government. Total separations increased in state and local government education (+17,000). The number 
of total separations increased in the Midwest region. (See table 3.)

The number of quits was little changed at 3.3 million in December. The quits rate was 2.2 percent. The 
number of quits was little changed for total private and for government. Quits decreased in federal 
government (-4,000). The number of quits increased in the Midwest region. (See table 4.)

There were 1.6 million layoffs and discharges in December, little changed from November. The layoffs 
and discharges rate was 1.1 percent in December. The number of layoffs and discharges was little 
changed for total private and for government. Layoffs and discharges increased in state and local 
government education (+15,000). The number of layoffs and discharges was little changed in all four 
regions. (See table 5.)

The number of other separations was little changed in December at 334,000. The number of other 
separations was little changed for total private and edged down for government. Other separations 
decreased in state and local government, excluding education (-11,000). The number of other 
separations was little changed in all four regions. (See table 6.)

Net Change in Employment

Large numbers of hires and separations occur every month throughout the business cycle. Net 
employment change results from the relationship between hires and separations. When the number of 
hires exceeds the number of separations, employment rises, even if the hires level is steady or declining. 
Conversely, when the number of hires is less than the number of separations, employment declines, even 
if the hires level is steady or rising. Over the 12 months ending in December, hires totaled 64.7 million 
and separations totaled 62.6 million, yielding a net employment gain of 2.2 million. These totals 
include workers who may have been hired and separated more than once during the year. 
____________
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey results for January 2018 are scheduled to be 
released on Friday, March 16, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. (EDT).

____________________________________________________________________________________________________
|                                   Revisions to the JOLTS Data                                    |
|                                                                                                  |
|With the release of January 2018 data on March 16, 2018, BLS will revise the job openings, hires, |
|and separations data to incorporate the annual updates to the Current Employment Statistics       |
|employment estimates and the JOLTS seasonal adjustment factors. Unadjusted data and seasonally    |
|adjusted data from January 2013 forward are subject to revision.                                  |
|__________________________________________________________________________________________________|

Table A. Job openings, hires, and total separations by industry, seasonally adjusted

Category	Job openings			Hires			Total separations
	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
LEVELS BY INDUSTRY (in thousands)
Total	5,539	5,978	5,811	5,303	5,493	5,488	5,084	5,212	5,238
Total private	5,065	5,466	5,290	4,984	5,119	5,129	4,754	4,863	4,885
Mining and logging(1)	17	20	21	22	36	32	22	30	36
Construction(1)	140	210	158	400	346	336	369	334	306
Manufacturing	342	404	364	293	343	352	287	317	329
Durable goods(1)	194	248	228	171	196	205	163	173	187
Nondurable goods(1)	148	156	136	122	147	147	124	144	142
Trade, transportation, and utilities	1,014	1,138	1,084	1,009	1,035	1,046	958	1,002	1,031
Wholesale trade(1)	182	177	207	130	146	144	142	123	143
Retail trade	650	788	703	672	684	690	631	688	673
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities(1)	182	173	174	208	206	212	185	191	216
Information(1)	81	79	112	79	78	90	82	69	85
Financial activities	357	345	348	190	195	191	162	172	174
Finance and insurance	272	270	267	126	127	126	107	131	122
Real estate and rental and leasing(1)	85	75	81	64	68	65	55	41	52
Professional and business services	989	1,075	956	1,140	1,181	1,191	1,132	1,177	1,143
Education and health services	1,158	1,108	1,136	642	688	667	596	623	624
Educational services(1)	93	100	74	78	99	107	73	84	95
Health care and social assistance	1,065	1,008	1,062	564	588	561	522	539	529
Leisure and hospitality	730	848	890	1,031	1,014	1,014	974	978	969
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	89	75	82	162	159	153	156	167	141
Accommodation and food services	640	773	808	869	855	861	817	811	828
Other services(1)	236	240	221	178	205	209	172	162	188
Government	474	511	521	319	373	359	330	348	352
Federal(1)	110	71	84	45	39	32	41	38	33
State and local	364	440	437	275	334	327	289	311	319
State and local education	143	165	170	137	171	169	133	148	165
State and local, excluding education(1)	220	275	267	137	164	157	156	162	154
RATES BY INDUSTRY (percent)
Total	3.7	3.9	3.8	3.6	3.7	3.7	3.5	3.5	3.6
Total private	4.0	4.2	4.1	4.1	4.1	4.1	3.9	3.9	3.9
Mining and logging(1)	2.5	2.7	2.8	3.2	5.0	4.4	3.3	4.1	5.0
Construction(1)	2.0	2.9	2.2	5.9	5.0	4.8	5.4	4.8	4.4
Manufacturing	2.7	3.1	2.8	2.4	2.7	2.8	2.3	2.5	2.6
Durable goods(1)	2.5	3.1	2.8	2.2	2.5	2.6	2.1	2.2	2.4
Nondurable goods(1)	3.1	3.2	2.8	2.6	3.1	3.1	2.7	3.1	3.0
Trade, transportation, and utilities	3.6	4.0	3.8	3.7	3.8	3.8	3.5	3.6	3.8
Wholesale trade(1)	3.0	2.9	3.4	2.2	2.4	2.4	2.4	2.1	2.4
Retail trade	3.9	4.7	4.3	4.2	4.3	4.4	4.0	4.3	4.3
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities(1)	3.1	3.0	3.0	3.7	3.6	3.7	3.3	3.4	3.8
Information(1)	2.8	2.8	4.0	2.8	2.9	3.3	3.0	2.5	3.1
Financial activities	4.1	3.9	3.9	2.3	2.3	2.3	1.9	2.0	2.1
Finance and insurance	4.2	4.1	4.1	2.0	2.0	2.0	1.7	2.1	2.0
Real estate and rental and leasing(1)	3.8	3.3	3.5	3.0	3.0	2.9	2.5	1.8	2.3
Professional and business services	4.6	4.9	4.4	5.6	5.6	5.7	5.5	5.6	5.5
Education and health services	4.8	4.5	4.6	2.8	3.0	2.9	2.6	2.7	2.7
Educational services(1)	2.5	2.6	2.0	2.2	2.7	2.9	2.0	2.3	2.6
Health care and social assistance	5.2	4.9	5.1	2.9	3.0	2.9	2.7	2.7	2.7
Leisure and hospitality	4.4	5.0	5.3	6.5	6.3	6.3	6.2	6.1	6.0
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	3.8	3.2	3.5	7.2	7.0	6.7	7.0	7.3	6.2
Accommodation and food services	4.5	5.3	5.5	6.4	6.2	6.3	6.1	5.9	6.0
Other services(1)	4.0	4.0	3.7	3.1	3.5	3.6	3.0	2.8	3.2
Government	2.1	2.2	2.3	1.4	1.7	1.6	1.5	1.6	1.6
Federal(1)	3.8	2.5	2.9	1.6	1.4	1.2	1.4	1.4	1.2
State and local	1.8	2.2	2.2	1.4	1.7	1.7	1.5	1.6	1.6
State and local education	1.4	1.6	1.6	1.3	1.6	1.6	1.3	1.4	1.6
State and local, excluding education(1)	2.4	2.9	2.8	1.5	1.8	1.7	1.7	1.8	1.7
Footnotes (1) No regular seasonal movements could be identified in the job openings series, therefore, the seasonally adjusted and not seasonally adjusted data are identical. (p) Preliminary

Technical Note


This news release presents statistics from the Job Openings and Labor
Turnover Survey (JOLTS). The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) collects
and compiles JOLTS data monthly from a sample of nonfarm
establishments. A more detailed discussion of JOLTS concepts and
methodology is available online at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/pdf/homch18.pdf.

Coverage and collection

The JOLTS program covers all private nonfarm establishments, as well
as federal, state, and local government entities in the 50 states and
the District of Columbia. Data are collected for total employment, job
openings, hires, quits, layoffs and discharges, other separations, and
total separations.

Concepts

Industry classification.  The industry classifications in this release
are in accordance with the 2012 version of the North American Industry
Classification System (NAICS).

Employment.  Employment includes persons on the payroll who worked or
received pay for the pay period that includes the 12th day of the
reference month. Full-time, part-time, permanent, short-term,
seasonal, salaried, and hourly employees are included, as are
employees on paid vacations or other paid leave. Proprietors or
partners of unincorporated businesses, unpaid family workers, or
persons on leave without pay or on strike for the entire pay period,
are not counted as employed. Employees of temporary help agencies,
employee leasing companies, outside contractors, and consultants are
counted by their employer of record, not by the establishment where
they are working.

Job openings.  Job openings information is collected for the last
business day of the reference month. A job opening requires that: 1) a
specific position exists and there is work available for that
position, 2) work could start within 30 days whether or not the
employer found a suitable candidate, and 3) the employer is actively
recruiting from outside the establishment to fill the position.
Included are full-time, part-time, permanent, short-term, and seasonal
openings. Active recruiting means that the establishment is taking
steps to fill a position by advertising in newspapers or on the
Internet, posting help-wanted signs, accepting applications, or using
other similar methods.

Jobs to be filled only by internal transfers, promotions, demotions,
or recall from layoffs are excluded. Also excluded are jobs with start
dates more than 30 days in the future, jobs for which employees have
been hired but have not yet reported for work, and jobs to be filled
by employees of temporary help agencies, employee leasing companies,
outside contractors, or consultants. The job openings rate is computed
by dividing the number of job openings by the sum of employment and
job openings and multiplying that quotient by 100.

Hires.  The hires level is the total number of additions to the
payroll occurring at any time during the reference month, including
both new and rehired employees, full-time and part-time, permanent,
short-term and seasonal employees, employees recalled to the location
after a layoff lasting more than 7 days, on-call or intermittent
employees who returned to work after having been formally separated,
and transfers from other locations. The hires count does not include
transfers or promotions within the reporting site, employees returning
from strike, employees of temporary help agencies or employee leasing
companies, outside contractors, or consultants. The hires rate is
computed by dividing the number of hires by employment and multiplying
that quotient by 100.

Separations.  The separations level is the total number of employment
terminations occurring at any time during the reference month, and is
reported by type of separation—quits, layoffs and discharges, and
other separations. (Some respondents are only able to report total
separations.) The quits count includes voluntary separations by
employees (except for retirements, which are reported as other
separations). The layoffs and discharges count is comprised of
involuntary separations initiated by the employer and includes layoffs
with no intent to rehire; formal layoffs lasting or expected to last
more than 7 days; discharges resulting from mergers, downsizing, or
closings; firings or other discharges for cause; terminations of
permanent or short-term employees; and terminations of seasonal
employees. The other separations count includes retirements, transfers
to other locations, deaths, and separations due to disability. The
separations count does not include transfers within the same location
or employees on strike. The separations rate is computed by dividing
the number of separations by employment and multiplying that quotient
by 100. The quits, layoffs and discharges, and other separations rates
are computed similarly.

Annual estimates.  Annual levels for hires, quits, layoffs and
discharges, other separations, and total separations are the sum of
the 12 published monthly levels. Annual rates are computed by dividing
the annual level by the Current Employment Statistics (CES) annual
average employment level, and multiplying that quotient by 100. This
figure will be approximately equal to the sum of the 12 monthly rates.
Consistent with BLS practice, annual estimates are published only for
not seasonally adjusted data and are released with the January news
release each year. Annual estimates are not calculated for job
openings because job openings are a stock, or point-in-time,
measurement for the last business day of each month.

Sample and estimation methodology

The JOLTS survey design is a stratified random sample of 16,000
nonfarm business and government establishments. The sample is
stratified by ownership, region, industry sector, and establishment
size class. The establishments are drawn from a universe of over 9.1
million establishments compiled by the Quarterly Census of Employment
and Wages (QCEW) program which includes all employers subject to state
unemployment insurance laws and federal agencies subject to the
Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees program.

JOLTS total employment estimates are benchmarked, or ratio adjusted,
monthly to the strike-adjusted employment estimates of the CES survey.
A ratio of CES to JOLTS employment is used to adjust the levels for
all other JOLTS data elements.

JOLTS business birth/death model

As with any sample survey, the JOLTS sample can only be as current as
its sampling frame. The time lag from the birth of an establishment
until its appearance on the sampling frame is approximately one year.
In addition, many of these new units may fail within the first year.
Since these universe units cannot be reflected on the sampling frame
immediately, the JOLTS sample cannot capture job openings, hires, and
separations from these units during their early existence. To
compensate for the inability to capture data from these
establishments, BLS has developed a birth/death model that uses birth
and death activity from previous years. The estimates of job openings,
hires, and separations produced by the birth/death model are added to
the sample-based estimates produced from the survey to arrive at the
estimates for openings, hires, and separations.

Seasonal adjustment

BLS uses X-13 ARIMA to seasonally adjust several JOLTS series
utilizing moving averages as seasonal filters. A concurrent seasonal
adjustment methodology is used in which new seasonal adjustment
factors are calculated each month, using all relevant data, up to and
including current month data. JOLTS seasonal adjustment includes both
additive and multiplicative models and REGARIMA (regression with auto-
correlated errors) modeling to improve the seasonal adjustment factors
at the beginning and end of the series and to detect and adjust for
outliers in the series.

Alignment procedure

The JOLTS measures for hires minus separations can be used to derive a
measure of net employment change. This change should be comparable to
the net employment change from the much larger CES survey. However,
definitional differences as well as sampling and nonsampling errors
between the two surveys historically caused JOLTS to diverge from CES
over time. To limit the divergence, and improve the quality of the
JOLTS hires and separations series, BLS implemented the Monthly
Alignment Method.

This method applies the CES employment trends to the seasonally
adjusted JOLTS implied employment trend (hires minus separations)
forcing them to be approximately the same, while preserving the
seasonality of the JOLTS data. First, the two series are seasonally
adjusted and the difference between the JOLTS implied employment
change and the CES net employment change is calculated. Next, the
JOLTS implied employment change is adjusted to equal the CES net
employment change through a proportional adjustment. This procedure
adjusts the two components (hires, separations) proportionally to
their contribution to the total churn (hires plus separations). The
adjusted hires and separations are converted back to not seasonally
adjusted data by reversing the application of the original seasonal
factors. After the Monthly Alignment Method has been used to adjust
the level estimates, rate estimates are computed from the adjusted
levels.

Reliability of the estimates

JOLTS estimates are subject to both sampling and nonsampling error.
When a sample is surveyed rather than the entire population, there is
a chance that the sample estimates may differ from the "true"
population values they represent. The exact difference, or sampling
error, varies depending on the particular sample selected, and this
variability is measured by the standard error of the estimate. BLS
analysis is generally conducted at the 90-percent level of confidence.
That means that there is a 90-percent chance, or level of confidence,
that an estimate based on a sample will differ by no more than 1.6
standard errors from the "true" population value because of sampling
error. Sampling error estimates are available at 
www.bls.gov/jlt/jolts_median_standard_errors.htm.

The JOLTS estimates also are affected by nonsampling error.
Nonsampling error can occur for many reasons, including the failure to
include a segment of the population, the inability to obtain data from
all units in the sample, the inability or unwillingness of respondents
to provide data on a timely basis, mistakes made by respondents,
errors made in the collection or processing of the data, and errors
from the employment benchmark data used in estimation.

Other information

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay
Service: (800) 877-8339.

Table 1. Job openings levels and rates by industry and region, seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)						Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	5,539	6,090	6,177	5,925	5,978	5,811	3.7	4.0	4.0	3.9	3.9	3.8
INDUSTRY
Total private	5,065	5,584	5,650	5,408	5,466	5,290	4.0	4.3	4.3	4.2	4.2	4.1
Mining and logging(3)	17	25	20	27	20	21	2.5	3.4	2.7	3.6	2.7	2.8
Construction(3)	140	230	179	195	210	158	2.0	3.2	2.5	2.7	2.9	2.2
Manufacturing	342	435	435	409	404	364	2.7	3.4	3.4	3.2	3.1	2.8
Durable goods(3)	194	248	262	247	248	228	2.5	3.1	3.3	3.1	3.1	2.8
Nondurable goods(3)	148	187	173	162	156	136	3.1	3.8	3.6	3.3	3.2	2.8
Trade, transportation, and utilities	1,014	1,116	1,147	967	1,138	1,084	3.6	3.9	4.0	3.4	4.0	3.8
Wholesale trade(3)	182	207	219	135	177	207	3.0	3.4	3.6	2.2	2.9	3.4
Retail trade	650	643	691	623	788	703	3.9	3.9	4.2	3.8	4.7	4.3
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities(3)	182	266	238	210	173	174	3.1	4.5	4.0	3.6	3.0	3.0
Information(3)	81	122	113	74	79	112	2.8	4.3	4.0	2.6	2.8	4.0
Financial activities	357	341	384	380	345	348	4.1	3.9	4.3	4.3	3.9	3.9
Finance and insurance	272	267	307	264	270	267	4.2	4.1	4.7	4.0	4.1	4.1
Real estate and rental and leasing(3)	85	74	77	116	75	81	3.8	3.3	3.4	5.0	3.3	3.5
Professional and business services	989	1,037	1,171	1,110	1,075	956	4.6	4.7	5.3	5.0	4.9	4.4
Education and health services	1,158	1,191	1,133	1,102	1,108	1,136	4.8	4.9	4.7	4.5	4.5	4.6
Educational services(3)	93	104	96	94	100	74	2.5	2.8	2.6	2.5	2.6	2.0
Health care and social assistance	1,065	1,087	1,037	1,009	1,008	1,062	5.2	5.3	5.0	4.9	4.9	5.1
Leisure and hospitality	730	859	770	848	848	890	4.4	5.1	4.6	5.0	5.0	5.3
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	89	80	88	79	75	82	3.8	3.4	3.7	3.3	3.2	3.5
Accommodation and food services	640	778	682	769	773	808	4.5	5.4	4.8	5.3	5.3	5.5
Other services(3)	236	228	297	296	240	221	4.0	3.8	4.9	4.9	4.0	3.7
Government	474	506	527	517	511	521	2.1	2.2	2.3	2.3	2.2	2.3
Federal(3)	110	66	75	73	71	84	3.8	2.3	2.6	2.5	2.5	2.9
State and local	364	440	453	444	440	437	1.8	2.2	2.3	2.2	2.2	2.2
State and local education	143	146	173	166	165	170	1.4	1.4	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.6
State and local, excluding education(3)	220	294	280	278	275	267	2.4	3.1	3.0	3.0	2.9	2.8
REGION(4)
Northeast	967	1,102	1,066	1,011	1,010	996	3.5	3.9	3.8	3.6	3.6	3.5
South	2,008	2,125	2,174	2,072	2,146	2,029	3.7	3.8	3.9	3.7	3.8	3.6
Midwest	1,253	1,520	1,595	1,507	1,479	1,402	3.7	4.4	4.7	4.4	4.3	4.1
West	1,312	1,343	1,342	1,335	1,343	1,384	3.8	3.9	3.9	3.8	3.8	3.9
Footnotes (1) Job openings are the number of job openings on the last business day of the month. (2) The job openings rate is the number of job openings on the last business day of the month as a percent of total employment plus job openings. (3) No regular seasonal movements could be identified in this series; therefore, identical numbers appear for the unadjusted and seasonally adjusted series. (4) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary

Table 2. Hires levels and rates by industry and region, seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)						Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	5,303	5,420	5,320	5,592	5,493	5,488	3.6	3.7	3.6	3.8	3.7	3.7
INDUSTRY
Total private	4,984	5,079	4,976	5,257	5,119	5,129	4.1	4.1	4.0	4.2	4.1	4.1
Mining and logging	22	36	28	35	36	32	3.2	5.0	3.9	4.8	5.0	4.4
Construction	400	370	389	384	346	336	5.9	5.4	5.6	5.5	5.0	4.8
Manufacturing	293	359	329	344	343	352	2.4	2.9	2.6	2.8	2.7	2.8
Durable goods	171	211	189	198	196	205	2.2	2.7	2.4	2.5	2.5	2.6
Nondurable goods	122	148	140	146	147	147	2.6	3.2	3.0	3.1	3.1	3.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	1,009	1,029	1,035	1,044	1,035	1,046	3.7	3.8	3.8	3.8	3.8	3.8
Wholesale trade	130	149	139	155	146	144	2.2	2.5	2.3	2.6	2.4	2.4
Retail trade	672	684	689	688	684	690	4.2	4.3	4.4	4.3	4.3	4.4
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities	208	196	208	200	206	212	3.7	3.5	3.7	3.5	3.6	3.7
Information	79	79	78	74	78	90	2.8	2.9	2.9	2.7	2.9	3.3
Financial activities	190	213	189	213	195	191	2.3	2.5	2.2	2.5	2.3	2.3
Finance and insurance	126	135	121	136	127	126	2.0	2.2	1.9	2.2	2.0	2.0
Real estate and rental and leasing	64	78	68	77	68	65	3.0	3.5	3.1	3.5	3.0	2.9
Professional and business services	1,140	1,123	1,150	1,181	1,181	1,191	5.6	5.4	5.5	5.7	5.6	5.7
Education and health services	642	662	627	677	688	667	2.8	2.9	2.7	2.9	3.0	2.9
Educational services	78	98	87	84	99	107	2.2	2.7	2.4	2.3	2.7	2.9
Health care and social assistance	564	564	541	593	588	561	2.9	2.9	2.8	3.0	3.0	2.9
Leisure and hospitality	1,031	989	961	1,060	1,014	1,014	6.5	6.2	6.1	6.6	6.3	6.3
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	162	160	146	162	159	153	7.2	7.0	6.4	7.1	7.0	6.7
Accommodation and food services	869	830	815	899	855	861	6.4	6.0	6.0	6.5	6.2	6.3
Other services	178	219	188	246	205	209	3.1	3.8	3.2	4.2	3.5	3.6
Government	319	340	344	336	373	359	1.4	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.7	1.6
Federal	45	36	38	43	39	32	1.6	1.3	1.3	1.5	1.4	1.2
State and local	275	305	306	292	334	327	1.4	1.6	1.6	1.5	1.7	1.7
State and local education	137	144	138	158	171	169	1.3	1.4	1.3	1.5	1.6	1.6
State and local, excluding education	137	160	169	135	164	157	1.5	1.8	1.8	1.5	1.8	1.7
REGION(3)
Northeast	849	801	821	952	789	786	3.2	3.0	3.0	3.5	2.9	2.9
South	2,074	2,167	2,121	2,217	2,260	2,260	3.9	4.1	4.0	4.1	4.2	4.2
Midwest	1,176	1,207	1,181	1,201	1,182	1,210	3.6	3.7	3.6	3.7	3.6	3.7
West	1,205	1,245	1,197	1,222	1,261	1,231	3.6	3.7	3.6	3.6	3.8	3.7
Footnotes (1) Hires are the number of hires during the entire month. (2) The hires rate is the number of hires during the entire month as a percent of total employment. (3) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary

Table 3. Total separations levels and rates by industry and region, seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)						Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	5,084	5,273	5,244	5,251	5,212	5,238	3.5	3.6	3.6	3.6	3.5	3.6
INDUSTRY
Total private	4,754	4,932	4,910	4,910	4,863	4,885	3.9	4.0	3.9	3.9	3.9	3.9
Mining and logging	22	27	23	32	30	36	3.3	3.7	3.1	4.4	4.1	5.0
Construction	369	337	378	361	334	306	5.4	4.9	5.5	5.2	4.8	4.4
Manufacturing	287	301	315	309	317	329	2.3	2.4	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.6
Durable goods	163	172	179	176	173	187	2.1	2.2	2.3	2.3	2.2	2.4
Nondurable goods	124	128	136	133	144	142	2.7	2.7	2.9	2.8	3.1	3.0
Trade, transportation, and utilities	958	1,020	977	994	1,002	1,031	3.5	3.7	3.6	3.6	3.6	3.8
Wholesale trade	142	157	122	133	123	143	2.4	2.7	2.1	2.2	2.1	2.4
Retail trade	631	676	668	677	688	673	4.0	4.3	4.2	4.3	4.3	4.3
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities	185	187	187	183	191	216	3.3	3.3	3.3	3.2	3.4	3.8
Information	82	83	96	72	69	85	3.0	3.0	3.5	2.7	2.5	3.1
Financial activities	162	212	180	204	172	174	1.9	2.5	2.1	2.4	2.0	2.1
Finance and insurance	107	131	116	136	131	122	1.7	2.1	1.9	2.2	2.1	2.0
Real estate and rental and leasing	55	81	64	68	41	52	2.5	3.7	2.9	3.1	1.8	2.3
Professional and business services	1,132	1,059	1,119	1,143	1,177	1,143	5.5	5.1	5.4	5.5	5.6	5.5
Education and health services	596	633	600	642	623	624	2.6	2.7	2.6	2.8	2.7	2.7
Educational services	73	77	74	89	84	95	2.0	2.1	2.0	2.4	2.3	2.6
Health care and social assistance	522	556	525	553	539	529	2.7	2.8	2.7	2.8	2.7	2.7
Leisure and hospitality	974	998	1,020	933	978	969	6.2	6.2	6.4	5.8	6.1	6.0
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	156	164	159	141	167	141	7.0	7.2	7.0	6.2	7.3	6.2
Accommodation and food services	817	834	861	792	811	828	6.1	6.1	6.3	5.8	5.9	6.0
Other services	172	263	202	219	162	188	3.0	4.6	3.5	3.8	2.8	3.2
Government	330	341	334	341	348	352	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.6	1.6
Federal	41	37	37	41	38	33	1.4	1.3	1.3	1.4	1.4	1.2
State and local	289	304	297	301	311	319	1.5	1.6	1.5	1.5	1.6	1.6
State and local education	133	141	129	157	148	165	1.3	1.4	1.2	1.5	1.4	1.6
State and local, excluding education	156	162	168	144	162	154	1.7	1.8	1.8	1.6	1.8	1.7
REGION(3)
Northeast	812	872	900	815	825	798	3.0	3.2	3.3	3.0	3.0	2.9
South	1,966	2,007	2,009	2,160	2,174	2,069	3.7	3.8	3.8	4.0	4.1	3.9
Midwest	1,128	1,180	1,168	1,134	1,081	1,198	3.5	3.6	3.6	3.5	3.3	3.7
West	1,178	1,213	1,167	1,142	1,132	1,173	3.5	3.6	3.5	3.4	3.4	3.5
Footnotes (1) Total separations are the number of total separations during the entire month. (2) The total separations rate is the number of total separations during the entire month as a percent of total employment. (3) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary

Table 4. Quits levels and rates by industry and region, seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)						Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	3,085	3,093	3,180	3,187	3,161	3,259	2.1	2.1	2.2	2.2	2.1	2.2
INDUSTRY
Total private	2,915	2,929	3,014	3,020	2,978	3,083	2.4	2.4	2.4	2.4	2.4	2.5
Mining and logging	12	11	15	20	15	19	1.9	1.5	2.1	2.8	2.1	2.7
Construction	134	140	154	164	140	128	2.0	2.0	2.2	2.4	2.0	1.8
Manufacturing	165	185	189	192	197	210	1.3	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.6	1.7
Durable goods	89	98	107	109	108	118	1.2	1.3	1.4	1.4	1.4	1.5
Nondurable goods	75	86	81	83	89	91	1.6	1.8	1.7	1.8	1.9	1.9
Trade, transportation, and utilities	623	639	619	655	639	675	2.3	2.3	2.3	2.4	2.3	2.5
Wholesale trade	94	85	82	93	86	100	1.6	1.4	1.4	1.6	1.4	1.7
Retail trade	432	456	435	455	440	460	2.7	2.9	2.7	2.9	2.8	2.9
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities	97	98	101	107	113	115	1.7	1.7	1.8	1.9	2.0	2.0
Information	49	46	55	46	43	47	1.8	1.7	2.0	1.7	1.6	1.7
Financial activities	78	118	112	121	115	119	0.9	1.4	1.3	1.4	1.4	1.4
Finance and insurance	59	73	78	78	92	87	0.9	1.2	1.2	1.2	1.5	1.4
Real estate and rental and leasing(3)	19	45	34	43	23	31	0.9	2.0	1.5	1.9	1.0	1.4
Professional and business services	672	590	663	657	713	721	3.3	2.8	3.2	3.1	3.4	3.4
Education and health services	409	395	403	437	411	421	1.8	1.7	1.7	1.9	1.8	1.8
Educational services	41	47	43	44	48	55	1.1	1.3	1.2	1.2	1.3	1.5
Health care and social assistance	367	349	360	393	362	366	1.9	1.8	1.8	2.0	1.8	1.9
Leisure and hospitality	688	639	675	619	638	667	4.4	4.0	4.2	3.9	4.0	4.2
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	73	60	48	61	73	69	3.2	2.7	2.1	2.7	3.2	3.0
Accommodation and food services	615	579	627	557	565	598	4.6	4.2	4.6	4.1	4.1	4.3
Other services(3)	86	166	131	109	69	75	1.5	2.9	2.3	1.9	1.2	1.3
Government	170	164	166	167	183	176	0.8	0.7	0.7	0.7	0.8	0.8
Federal	15	15	15	15	18	14	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.6	0.6	0.5
State and local	155	149	151	152	165	162	0.8	0.8	0.8	0.8	0.8	0.8
State and local education	70	75	69	81	82	82	0.7	0.7	0.7	0.8	0.8	0.8
State and local, excluding education	85	73	82	71	83	80	0.9	0.8	0.9	0.8	0.9	0.9
REGION(4)
Northeast	440	447	434	431	444	427	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.6	1.6
South	1,250	1,205	1,273	1,395	1,315	1,316	2.4	2.3	2.4	2.6	2.5	2.5
Midwest	664	688	755	660	671	744	2.1	2.1	2.3	2.0	2.0	2.3
West	730	752	718	700	732	773	2.2	2.2	2.1	2.1	2.2	2.3
Footnotes (1) Quits are the number of quits during the entire month. (2) The quits rate is the number of quits during the entire month as a percent of total employment. (3) No regular seasonal movements could be identified in this series; therefore, identical numbers appear for the unadjusted and seasonally adjusted series. (4) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary

Table 5. Layoffs and discharges levels and rates by industry and region, seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)						Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	1,624	1,781	1,746	1,693	1,725	1,645	1.1	1.2	1.2	1.2	1.2	1.1
INDUSTRY
Total private	1,525	1,667	1,643	1,581	1,620	1,521	1.2	1.3	1.3	1.3	1.3	1.2
Mining and logging(3)	6	13	6	11	13	16	0.9	1.9	0.9	1.5	1.8	2.2
Construction	214	187	217	177	187	168	3.2	2.7	3.1	2.5	2.7	2.4
Manufacturing	100	96	101	94	100	101	0.8	0.8	0.8	0.8	0.8	0.8
Durable goods	57	63	57	54	52	57	0.7	0.8	0.7	0.7	0.7	0.7
Nondurable goods	43	33	44	40	48	45	0.9	0.7	0.9	0.8	1.0	0.9
Trade, transportation, and utilities	247	320	280	268	291	288	0.9	1.2	1.0	1.0	1.1	1.0
Wholesale trade(3)	36	64	36	36	31	33	0.6	1.1	0.6	0.6	0.5	0.5
Retail trade	142	178	171	171	193	166	0.9	1.1	1.1	1.1	1.2	1.0
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities	69	78	72	61	67	89	1.2	1.4	1.3	1.1	1.2	1.6
Information	23	30	29	23	20	30	0.8	1.1	1.1	0.8	0.7	1.1
Financial activities	61	60	44	62	43	40	0.7	0.7	0.5	0.7	0.5	0.5
Finance and insurance	29	28	19	38	26	23	0.5	0.4	0.3	0.6	0.4	0.4
Real estate and rental and leasing	32	31	26	24	17	17	1.5	1.4	1.2	1.1	0.8	0.8
Professional and business services	401	395	432	402	400	372	2.0	1.9	2.1	1.9	1.9	1.8
Education and health services	142	179	150	161	170	146	0.6	0.8	0.6	0.7	0.7	0.6
Educational services	28	23	30	39	33	36	0.8	0.6	0.8	1.1	0.9	1.0
Health care and social assistance	114	156	121	122	137	110	0.6	0.8	0.6	0.6	0.7	0.6
Leisure and hospitality	256	314	317	277	311	267	1.6	2.0	2.0	1.7	1.9	1.7
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	81	99	108	78	89	67	3.6	4.4	4.8	3.4	3.9	2.9
Accommodation and food services	175	215	209	198	222	200	1.3	1.6	1.5	1.4	1.6	1.5
Other services	75	74	66	106	84	95	1.3	1.3	1.1	1.8	1.4	1.6
Government	99	114	103	112	105	123	0.4	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.6
Federal	13	13	11	13	12	10	0.5	0.5	0.4	0.4	0.4	0.4
State and local	86	101	92	100	93	113	0.4	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.5	0.6
State and local education	40	41	34	50	45	60	0.4	0.4	0.3	0.5	0.4	0.6
State and local, excluding education	46	60	58	50	47	53	0.5	0.7	0.6	0.5	0.5	0.6
REGION(4)
Northeast	310	360	412	316	322	304	1.2	1.3	1.5	1.2	1.2	1.1
South	566	654	632	617	728	628	1.1	1.2	1.2	1.2	1.4	1.2
Midwest	387	409	335	401	346	383	1.2	1.3	1.0	1.2	1.1	1.2
West	361	358	367	360	330	329	1.1	1.1	1.1	1.1	1.0	1.0
Footnotes (1) Layoffs and discharges are the number of layoffs and discharges during the entire month. (2) The layoffs and discharges rate is the number of layoffs and discharges during the entire month as a percent of total employment. (3) No regular seasonal movements could be identified in this series; therefore, identical numbers appear for the unadjusted and seasonally adjusted series. (4) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary

Table 6. Other separations levels and rates by industry and region, seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)						Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Aug. 2017	Sept. 2017	Oct. 2017	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	375	398	318	372	326	334	0.3	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2
INDUSTRY
Total private	314	335	252	310	265	281	0.3	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2
Mining and logging	4	2	2	1	2	1	0.6	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2
Construction(3)	20	10	6	20	8	10	0.3	0.1	0.1	0.3	0.1	0.1
Manufacturing	23	20	26	23	21	18	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.1
Durable goods	17	11	15	13	14	12	0.2	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2
Nondurable goods(3)	6	9	11	10	6	6	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.1	0.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	88	60	78	71	72	69	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3
Wholesale trade	13	8	3	4	6	10	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.2
Retail trade	57	41	61	51	55	47	0.4	0.3	0.4	0.3	0.3	0.3
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities(3)	18	11	13	15	11	12	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2
Information(3)	10	7	12	4	6	9	0.4	0.3	0.4	0.1	0.2	0.3
Financial activities	23	35	24	21	14	15	0.3	0.4	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2
Finance and insurance	20	30	19	19	13	12	0.3	0.5	0.3	0.3	0.2	0.2
Real estate and rental and leasing(3)	4	5	5	1	1	4	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.1	0.0	0.2
Professional and business services	59	74	25	84	64	50	0.3	0.4	0.1	0.4	0.3	0.2
Education and health services	45	59	46	44	42	57	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2
Educational services(3)	4	8	2	5	2	4	0.1	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1
Health care and social assistance(3)	41	51	44	38	40	53	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.3
Leisure and hospitality	30	45	29	38	29	35	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2
Arts, entertainment, and recreation(3)	3	4	3	2	5	4	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.1	0.2	0.2
Accommodation and food services(3)	27	41	26	36	25	30	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2
Other services(3)	12	23	5	4	9	17	0.2	0.4	0.1	0.1	0.2	0.3
Government	62	63	66	62	61	53	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.2
Federal	13	10	11	13	8	9	0.5	0.3	0.4	0.4	0.3	0.3
State and local	49	53	55	49	53	44	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.2
State and local education	23	24	27	26	21	22	0.2	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2
State and local, excluding education	26	29	28	23	32	21	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.2
REGION(4)
Northeast	62	66	54	68	60	67	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2
South	150	148	104	148	131	125	0.3	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2
Midwest	77	83	78	73	64	70	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2
West	86	102	82	83	70	72	0.3	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2
Footnotes (1) Other separations are the number of other separations during the entire month. (2) The other separations rate is the number of other separations during the entire month as a percent of total employment. (3) No regular seasonal movements could be identified in this series; therefore, identical numbers appear for the unadjusted and seasonally adjusted series. (4) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary
NOTE: Levels are rounded to the nearest thousand and rates are rounded to the nearest tenth. Levels and rates may round down to zero.

Table 7. Job openings levels and rates by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)			Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	5,116	5,748	5,359	3.4	3.7	3.5
INDUSTRY
Total private	4,658	5,250	4,857	3.6	4.0	3.7
Mining and logging	17	20	21	2.5	2.7	2.8
Construction	140	210	158	2.1	2.9	2.2
Manufacturing	342	404	364	2.7	3.1	2.8
Durable goods	194	248	228	2.5	3.1	2.8
Nondurable goods	148	156	136	3.1	3.2	2.8
Trade, transportation, and utilities	927	1,107	1,008	3.2	3.8	3.4
Wholesale trade	182	177	207	3.0	2.9	3.4
Retail trade	563	757	627	3.3	4.4	3.7
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities	182	173	174	3.0	2.9	2.9
Information	81	79	112	2.8	2.8	3.9
Financial activities	349	326	336	4.0	3.7	3.8
Finance and insurance	264	251	255	4.1	3.9	3.9
Real estate and rental and leasing	85	75	81	3.8	3.3	3.5
Professional and business services	880	1,046	808	4.1	4.7	3.7
Education and health services	1,116	1,057	1,102	4.6	4.3	4.5
Educational services	93	100	74	2.5	2.5	1.9
Health care and social assistance	1,023	957	1,028	5.0	4.6	5.0
Leisure and hospitality	569	762	727	3.6	4.6	4.4
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	62	64	59	2.9	2.9	2.7
Accommodation and food services	507	698	669	3.7	4.9	4.7
Other services	236	240	221	4.0	4.0	3.7
Government	458	499	502	2.0	2.1	2.2
Federal	110	71	84	3.7	2.5	2.9
State and local	348	427	419	1.7	2.1	2.1
State and local education	127	152	152	1.2	1.4	1.4
State and local, excluding education	220	275	267	2.4	2.9	2.9
REGION(3)
Northeast	935	964	947	3.3	3.4	3.3
South	1,873	2,035	1,872	3.4	3.6	3.3
Midwest	1,150	1,476	1,301	3.4	4.3	3.8
West	1,158	1,273	1,239	3.4	3.6	3.5
Footnotes (1) Job openings are the number of job openings on the last business day of the month. (2) The job openings rate is the number of job openings on the last business day of the month as a percent of total employment plus job openings. (3) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary

Table 8. Hires levels and rates by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)			Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	3,905	5,090	4,092	2.7	3.4	2.8
INDUSTRY
Total private	3,711	4,791	3,875	3.0	3.8	3.1
Mining and logging	15	33	21	2.2	4.5	2.9
Construction	231	257	193	3.5	3.6	2.8
Manufacturing	196	278	232	1.6	2.2	1.9
Durable goods	116	161	140	1.5	2.1	1.8
Nondurable goods	80	117	92	1.7	2.5	2.0
Trade, transportation, and utilities	816	1,316	853	2.9	4.7	3.0
Wholesale trade	95	108	104	1.6	1.8	1.7
Retail trade	506	900	513	3.1	5.5	3.1
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities	215	308	235	3.7	5.3	4.0
Information	63	74	73	2.3	2.7	2.7
Financial activities	141	164	139	1.7	1.9	1.6
Finance and insurance	94	109	94	1.5	1.7	1.5
Real estate and rental and leasing	46	55	46	2.1	2.5	2.1
Professional and business services	929	1,084	993	4.5	5.1	4.7
Education and health services	465	567	477	2.0	2.4	2.0
Educational services	37	63	52	1.0	1.6	1.4
Health care and social assistance	428	504	425	2.2	2.6	2.2
Leisure and hospitality	741	859	753	4.8	5.5	4.8
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	112	114	103	5.4	5.3	4.9
Accommodation and food services	629	745	650	4.7	5.5	4.8
Other services	115	159	140	2.0	2.7	2.4
Government	194	299	217	0.9	1.3	1.0
Federal	37	51	28	1.3	1.8	1.0
State and local	157	247	189	0.8	1.2	1.0
State and local education	69	117	88	0.6	1.1	0.8
State and local, excluding education	88	131	101	1.0	1.4	1.1
REGION(3)
Northeast	658	715	582	2.4	2.6	2.1
South	1,508	2,073	1,692	2.8	3.8	3.1
Midwest	861	1,094	900	2.6	3.3	2.7
West	879	1,208	918	2.6	3.6	2.7
Footnotes (1) Hires are the number of hires during the entire month. (2) The hires rate is the number of hires during the entire month as a percent of total employment. (3) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary

Table 9. Total separations levels and rates by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)			Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	4,851	4,566	4,978	3.3	3.1	3.4
INDUSTRY
Total private	4,562	4,317	4,665	3.7	3.4	3.7
Mining and logging	19	27	33	2.9	3.7	4.5
Construction	432	327	326	6.5	4.6	4.7
Manufacturing	248	271	279	2.0	2.2	2.2
Durable goods	137	140	154	1.8	1.8	2.0
Nondurable goods	111	130	125	2.4	2.8	2.7
Trade, transportation, and utilities	965	879	1,068	3.4	3.1	3.8
Wholesale trade	115	105	121	2.0	1.8	2.0
Retail trade	644	602	692	3.9	3.7	4.2
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities	206	172	255	3.5	3.0	4.3
Information	74	60	79	2.7	2.2	2.9
Financial activities	153	143	157	1.8	1.7	1.8
Finance and insurance	102	104	108	1.6	1.7	1.7
Real estate and rental and leasing	51	39	49	2.3	1.8	2.2
Professional and business services	1,150	1,056	1,160	5.6	5.0	5.5
Education and health services	512	494	537	2.2	2.1	2.3
Educational services	54	46	72	1.5	1.2	1.9
Health care and social assistance	458	448	465	2.4	2.3	2.4
Leisure and hospitality	845	905	848	5.5	5.8	5.4
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	130	173	114	6.3	8.1	5.4
Accommodation and food services	715	733	734	5.4	5.4	5.4
Other services	163	156	178	2.9	2.7	3.1
Government	289	249	312	1.3	1.1	1.4
Federal	40	37	33	1.4	1.3	1.2
State and local	248	211	280	1.3	1.1	1.4
State and local education	103	74	135	1.0	0.7	1.3
State and local, excluding education	145	137	144	1.6	1.5	1.6
REGION(3)
Northeast	820	726	798	3.0	2.6	2.9
South	1,795	1,839	1,871	3.4	3.4	3.5
Midwest	1,125	992	1,195	3.5	3.0	3.6
West	1,111	1,010	1,113	3.3	3.0	3.3
Footnotes (1) Total separations are the number of total separations during the entire month. (2) The total separations rate is the number of total separations during the entire month as a percent of total employment. (3) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary

Table 10. Quits levels and rates by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)			Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	2,614	2,650	2,823	1.8	1.8	1.9
INDUSTRY
Total private	2,483	2,521	2,688	2.0	2.0	2.1
Mining and logging	10	13	16	1.5	1.7	2.2
Construction	104	108	92	1.6	1.5	1.3
Manufacturing	121	148	154	1.0	1.2	1.2
Durable goods	64	79	86	0.8	1.0	1.1
Nondurable goods	57	69	68	1.2	1.5	1.4
Trade, transportation, and utilities	560	550	621	2.0	2.0	2.2
Wholesale trade	67	70	78	1.1	1.2	1.3
Retail trade	393	375	426	2.4	2.3	2.6
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities	99	105	117	1.7	1.8	2.0
Information	43	34	42	1.5	1.2	1.5
Financial activities	66	93	103	0.8	1.1	1.2
Finance and insurance	47	70	72	0.8	1.1	1.1
Real estate and rental and leasing	19	23	31	0.9	1.0	1.4
Professional and business services	594	635	676	2.9	3.0	3.2
Education and health services	336	322	350	1.5	1.4	1.5
Educational services	28	30	40	0.8	0.8	1.1
Health care and social assistance	308	292	310	1.6	1.5	1.6
Leisure and hospitality	565	548	559	3.7	3.5	3.6
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	52	53	50	2.5	2.5	2.4
Accommodation and food services	513	495	509	3.8	3.6	3.7
Other services	86	69	75	1.5	1.2	1.3
Government	131	130	136	0.6	0.6	0.6
Federal	13	16	12	0.5	0.6	0.4
State and local	118	114	124	0.6	0.6	0.6
State and local education	47	49	56	0.4	0.4	0.5
State and local, excluding education	70	65	68	0.8	0.7	0.7
REGION(3)
Northeast	381	372	373	1.4	1.4	1.4
South	1,040	1,085	1,111	2.0	2.0	2.1
Midwest	559	577	643	1.7	1.7	2.0
West	635	616	696	1.9	1.8	2.1
Footnotes (1) Quits are the number of quits during the entire month. (2) The quits rate is the number of quits during the entire month as a percent of total employment. (3) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary

Table 11. Layoffs and discharges levels and rates by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)			Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	1,850	1,635	1,817	1.3	1.1	1.2
INDUSTRY
Total private	1,756	1,557	1,693	1.4	1.2	1.3
Mining and logging	6	13	16	0.9	1.7	2.1
Construction	308	211	224	4.6	3.0	3.2
Manufacturing	104	106	106	0.8	0.8	0.8
Durable goods	56	51	55	0.7	0.7	0.7
Nondurable goods	49	55	51	1.1	1.2	1.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	324	270	384	1.2	1.0	1.4
Wholesale trade	36	31	33	0.6	0.5	0.5
Retail trade	200	184	225	1.2	1.1	1.4
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities	89	55	126	1.5	1.0	2.1
Information	21	20	28	0.8	0.7	1.0
Financial activities	61	37	38	0.7	0.4	0.5
Finance and insurance	33	22	25	0.5	0.3	0.4
Real estate and rental and leasing	28	15	14	1.3	0.7	0.6
Professional and business services	484	365	426	2.4	1.7	2.0
Education and health services	132	130	131	0.6	0.6	0.6
Educational services	22	14	28	0.6	0.4	0.8
Health care and social assistance	109	116	102	0.6	0.6	0.5
Leisure and hospitality	251	328	254	1.6	2.1	1.6
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	76	115	60	3.7	5.4	2.8
Accommodation and food services	175	212	194	1.3	1.6	1.4
Other services	65	78	86	1.2	1.3	1.5
Government	94	78	123	0.4	0.3	0.5
Federal	13	14	10	0.5	0.5	0.3
State and local	81	64	114	0.4	0.3	0.6
State and local education	40	17	64	0.4	0.2	0.6
State and local, excluding education	41	47	49	0.5	0.5	0.5
REGION(3)
Northeast	384	310	362	1.4	1.1	1.3
South	591	631	627	1.1	1.2	1.2
Midwest	491	362	483	1.5	1.1	1.5
West	385	332	345	1.2	1.0	1.0
Footnotes (1) Layoffs and discharges are the number of layoffs and discharges during the entire month. (2) The layoffs and discharges rate is the number of layoffs and discharges during the entire month as a percent of total employment. (3) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary

Table 12. Other separations levels and rates by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted(1)

Industry and region	Levels (in thousands)			Rates(2)
	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)	Dec. 2016	Nov. 2017	Dec. 2017(p)
Total	387	280	338	0.3	0.2	0.2
INDUSTRY
Total private	323	240	285	0.3	0.2	0.2
Mining and logging	4	1	1	0.5	0.2	0.2
Construction	20	8	10	0.3	0.1	0.1
Manufacturing	23	16	19	0.2	0.1	0.2
Durable goods	17	10	13	0.2	0.1	0.2
Nondurable goods	6	6	6	0.1	0.1	0.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	81	59	63	0.3	0.2	0.2
Wholesale trade	12	4	11	0.2	0.1	0.2
Retail trade	51	44	40	0.3	0.3	0.2
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities	18	11	12	0.3	0.2	0.2
Information	10	6	9	0.4	0.2	0.3
Financial activities	26	13	16	0.3	0.2	0.2
Finance and insurance	22	12	12	0.4	0.2	0.2
Real estate and rental and leasing	4	1	4	0.2	0.0	0.2
Professional and business services	72	57	59	0.3	0.3	0.3
Education and health services	45	42	57	0.2	0.2	0.2
Educational services	4	2	4	0.1	0.1	0.1
Health care and social assistance	41	40	53	0.2	0.2	0.3
Leisure and hospitality	30	29	35	0.2	0.2	0.2
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	3	5	4	0.1	0.2	0.2
Accommodation and food services	27	25	30	0.2	0.2	0.2
Other services	12	9	17	0.2	0.2	0.3
Government	64	40	53	0.3	0.2	0.2
Federal	14	7	11	0.5	0.2	0.4
State and local	50	34	42	0.3	0.2	0.2
State and local education	16	9	15	0.1	0.1	0.1
State and local, excluding education	34	25	27	0.4	0.3	0.3
REGION(3)
Northeast	56	43	63	0.2	0.2	0.2
South	164	123	133	0.3	0.2	0.2
Midwest	76	52	68	0.2	0.2	0.2
West	91	62	73	0.3	0.2	0.2
Footnotes (1) Other separations are the number of other separations during the entire month. (2) The other separations rate is the number of other separations during the entire month as a percent of total employment. (3) The states (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. (p) Preliminary
NOTE: Levels are rounded to the nearest thousand and rates are rounded to the nearest tenth. Levels and rates may round down to zero.