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0.3 unemployed person per job opening in Maryland and North Dakota in January 2024
March 28, 2024
In January 2024, there were a total of 6,124,000 unemployed people and 8,863,000 job openings in the United States, yielding a ratio of 0.7 unemployed person per job opening. The national job openings rate was 5.3 percent. Maryland and North Dakota were among the states with the lowest numbers of unemployed people per job opening with 0.3 person each. Maryland had one of the highest job openings rates in the nation at 7.4 percent. The job openings rate in North Dakota was 5.6 percent.
Number of unemployed people per job opening by state, January 2024
Total U.S.: 0.7
Number of unemployed people per job opening and job openings rates by state, January 2024
State
Unemployed people per job opening
Unemployed people
Job openings
Job openings rate
Total U.S.
0.7
6,124,000
8,863,000
5.3
Alabama
0.5
66,558
129,000
5.6
Alaska
0.7
16,406
25,000
7.0
Arizona
1.1
155,052
144,000
4.3
Arkansas
0.7
50,811
71,000
5.0
California
1.2
1,013,856
819,000
4.4
Colorado
0.6
110,213
183,000
5.8
Connecticut
0.9
82,924
90,000
5.0
Delaware
0.6
20,659
36,000
6.9
District of Columbia
0.5
20,312
44,000
5.4
Florida
0.7
340,168
518,000
5.0
Georgia
0.6
166,760
283,000
5.4
Hawaii
0.8
20,868
26,000
3.9
Idaho
0.6
32,264
52,000
5.7
Illinois
0.9
305,486
349,000
5.4
Indiana
0.7
117,341
162,000
4.7
Iowa
0.5
51,077
96,000
5.7
Kansas
0.5
39,069
82,000
5.4
Kentucky
0.7
87,154
117,000
5.5
Louisiana
0.7
85,123
122,000
5.9
Maine
0.5
23,742
45,000
6.4
Maryland
0.3
72,831
219,000
7.4
Massachusetts
0.5
114,168
214,000
5.4
Michigan
0.8
201,951
261,000
5.5
Minnesota
0.5
82,861
183,000
5.7
Mississippi
0.5
39,128
74,000
5.9
Missouri
0.5
101,578
205,000
6.4
Montana
0.5
19,312
37,000
6.6
Nebraska
0.5
26,336
55,000
4.9
Nevada
1.0
84,821
84,000
5.1
New Hampshire
0.5
19,663
41,000
5.5
New Jersey
1.1
232,347
211,000
4.6
New Mexico
0.6
38,562
61,000
6.5
New York
0.8
438,983
556,000
5.4
North Carolina
0.6
185,737
299,000
5.7
North Dakota
0.3
8,027
26,000
5.6
Ohio
0.6
211,818
334,000
5.6
Oklahoma
0.6
70,141
115,000
6.1
Oregon
0.6
88,370
143,000
6.8
Pennsylvania
0.6
220,568
367,000
5.6
Rhode Island
0.7
20,926
28,000
5.2
South Carolina
0.5
75,325
164,000
6.5
South Dakota
0.4
9,899
27,000
5.5
Tennessee
0.6
117,040
209,000
5.9
Texas
0.7
584,580
781,000
5.3
Utah
0.6
50,263
91,000
5.0
Vermont
0.4
8,093
18,000
5.5
Virginia
0.5
139,777
257,000
5.8
Washington
1.1
183,684
175,000
4.6
West Virginia
0.6
34,031
53,000
6.8
Wisconsin
0.6
100,375
163,000
5.1
Wyoming
0.4
8,373
19,000
6.1
Note: Data are seasonally adjusted.
In Nevada, the numbers of unemployed people and job openings in January 2024 were roughly equal, yielding a ratio of 1.0 unemployed person per job opening.
Among the states with the highest numbers of unemployed people per job opening were California (1.2 people) and Arizona, New Jersey and Washington (1.1 people each).
In addition to Maryland, other states that had high job openings rates in January 2024 were Alaska (7.0 percent), Delaware (6.9 percent), and Oregon and West Virginia (6.8 percent each). Some of the lowest rates occurred in Hawaii (3.9 percent), Arizona (4.3 percent), and California (4.4 percent).
These data are from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey and are seasonally adjusted and preliminary. For more information, see "State Job Openings and Labor Turnover — January 2024" and charts of state job openings and labor turnover data. The ratio of unemployed people per job opening shows tightness in the labor market. When the ratio equals 1.0, there is approximately one unemployed person per job opening. When less than 1.0, the labor market is tight, as job openings outnumber the unemployed. When greater than 1.0, there are more unemployed people than available jobs. The job openings rate is calculated by dividing the number of job openings by the sum of employment and job openings.
United States Department of Labor
