For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Wednesday, April 13, 2011 USDL-11-0511
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 – February 2011
There were 3.1 million job openings on the last business day of
February 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The
job openings rate (2.3 percent) increased over the month. The hires
rate (3.0 percent) and total separations rate (2.9 percent) were
little changed over the month. This release includes estimates of the
number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the total
nonfarm sector by industry and by geographic region.
Job Openings
The number of job openings in February was 3.1 million, an increase
from 2.7 million in January. (See table 1.) The job openings level has
trended up since the end of the recession in June 2009 (as designated
by the National Bureau of Economic Research) but remains well below
the 4.4 million openings when the recession began in December 2007.
The number of job openings in February (not seasonally adjusted)
increased from 12 months earlier for total nonfarm, total private,
several industries, and the Midwest, Northeast, and South regions. The
level decreased over the year for federal government. (See table 5.)
_________________________________________________________________________
| Corrections to the JOLTS Data |
| |
|Corrections were made to the January 2011 Job Openings and Labor |
|Turnover Survey release issued on Friday, March 11, 2011. See the note |
|at the end of this release for additional information. |
_________________________________________________________________________
- 2 -
Table A. Job openings, hires, and total separations by industry, seasonally
adjusted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Job openings | Hires | Total separations
|--------------------------------------------------------------
Industry | Feb. | Jan. | Feb. | Feb. | Jan. | Feb. | Feb. | Jan. | Feb.
| 2010 | 2011 | 2011p| 2010 | 2011 | 2011p| 2010 | 2011 | 2011p
-------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------
| Levels (in thousands)
|--------------------------------------------------------------
Total(c)...........|2,523 |2,741 |3,093 |3,784 |3,769 |3,907 |3,795 |3,612 |3,792
| | | | | | | | |
Total private(1)..|2,159 |2,418 |2,759 |3,484 |3,494 |3,646 |3,486 |3,337 |3,512
Construction.....| 62 | 60 | 62 | 297 | 254 | 310 | 344 | 281 | 294
Manufacturing....| 156 | 207 | 204 | 254 | 246 | 245 | 263 | 184 | 229
Trade, trans- | | | | | | | | |
portation, and | | | | | | | | |
utilities(2)....| 373 | 470 | 453 | 778 | 783 | 801 | 773 | 769 | 794
Retail trade....| 257 | 263 | 235 | 534 | 536 | 533 | 523 | 527 | 546
Professional | | | | | | | | |
and business | | | | | | | | |
services........| 396 | 459 | 675 | 717 | 810 | 812 | 684 | 756 | 771
Education and | | | | | | | | |
health ser- | | | | | | | | |
vices...........| 523 | 482 | 557 | 457 | 437 | 464 | 430 | 394 | 441
Leisure and | | | | | | | | |
hospitality.....| 245 | 301 | 382 | 584 | 588 | 610 | 571 | 596 | 594
Arts, enter- | | | | | | | | |
tainment and | | | | | | | | |
recreation.....| 22 | 39 | 49 | 80 | 84 | 97 | 75 | 92 | 91
Accommodation | | | | | | | | |
and food | | | | | | | | |
services.......| 223 | 262 | 333 | 503 | 504 | 513 | 496 | 505 | 503
Government(3,c)...| 364 | 323 | 334 | 300 | 275 | 261 | 309 | 275 | 280
State and local | | | | | | | | |
government......| 235 | 259 | 263 | 248 | 242 | 222 | 267 | 245 | 246
|--------------------------------------------------------------
| Rates (percent)
|--------------------------------------------------------------
Total(c)...........|. 1.9 | 2.1 | 2.3 | 2.9 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 2.9
| | | | | | | | |
Total private(1)..| 2.0 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 3.3 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.1 | 3.2
Construction.....| 1.1 | 1.1 | 1.1 | 5.4 | 4.6 | 5.6 | 6.2 | 5.1 | 5.3
Manufacturing....| 1.3 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 2.2 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 2.3 | 1.6 | 2.0
Trade, trans- | | | | | | | | |
portation, and | | | | | | | | |
utilities(2)....| 1.5 | 1.9 | 1.8 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.1 | 3.2
Retail trade....| 1.8 | 1.8 | 1.6 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 3.8
Professional | | | | | | | | |
and business | | | | | | | | |
services........| 2.3 | 2.6 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.1 | 4.5 | 4.5
Education and | | | | | | | | |
health ser- | | | | | | | | |
vices...........| 2.6 | 2.4 | 2.7 | 2.4 | 2.2 | 2.3 | 2.2 | 2.0 | 2.2
Leisure and | | | | | | | | |
hospitality.....| 1.9 | 2.3 | 2.8 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 4.5
Arts, enter- | | | | | | | | |
tainment and | | | | | | | | |
recreation.....| 1.1 | 2.0 | 2.5 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 5.1 | 4.0 | 4.9 | 4.8
Accommodation | | | | | | | | |
and food | | | | | | | | |
services.......| 2.0 | 2.3 | 2.9 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5
Government(3,c)...|. 1.6 | 1.4 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 1.2 | 1.3
State and local | | | | | | | | |
government......| 1.2 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 1.3
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, and
other services, not shown separately.
2 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not
shown separately.
3 Includes federal government, not shown separately.
p = Preliminary
c = Data from October 2008 through December 2010 have been corrected.
Hires
In February, the hires rate was essentially unchanged for total
nonfarm, total private, and government. The number of hires was little
changed in every industry and decreased in the West region. (See table
2.) At 3.9 million, the number of hires in February was below the 5.0
million hires in December 2007 when the recession began.
Over the 12 months ending in February, the hires rate (not seasonally
adjusted) was little changed for total nonfarm, total private,
government, most industries, and all regions. The hires rate fell over
the year for federal government. (See table 6.)
- 3 -
Separations
Total separations includes quits (voluntary separations), layoffs and
discharges (involuntary separations), and other separations (including
retirements). The total separations, or turnover, rate was little
changed at 2.9 percent for total nonfarm in February. Over the 12
months ending in February, the total separations rate (not seasonally
adjusted) was essentially unchanged for total nonfarm, total private,
and government. (See tables 3 and 7.)
The quits rate can serve as a measure of workers’ willingness or
ability to change jobs. In February, the quits rate increased for
total nonfarm and total private but was unchanged for government. The
quits rate increased in retail trade and all four regions. (See table
4.) The 1.9 million quits in February remains well below the 2.8
million quits in December 2007 when the recession began.
The number of quits (not seasonally adjusted) in February increased
over the year for total nonfarm and total private but was little
changed for government. The number of quits increased for professional
and business services. (See table 8.)
The layoffs and discharges component of total separations is
seasonally adjusted at the total nonfarm, total private, and
government levels. The layoffs and discharges rate was essentially
unchanged in February for total nonfarm, total private, and
government. (See table B below.) After peaking at 2.5 million in
February 2009, the number of layoffs and discharges for total nonfarm
fell to a series low of 1.5 million in January 2011.
The layoffs and discharges level (not seasonally adjusted) was little
changed over the 12 months ending in February for total nonfarm, total
private, and government as well as all industries and three regions;
layoffs and discharges declined in the Midwest over the year. (See
table 9.)
Table B. Layoffs and discharges by industry, seasonally adjusted
--------------------------------------------------------------------
| Levels (in thousands) | Rates (percent)
|------------------------------------------------
Industry | Feb. | Jan. | Feb. | Feb. | Jan. | Feb.
| 2010 | 2011 | 2011p| 2010 | 2011 | 2011p
-------------------|------------------------------------------------
Total(c)...........|.1,755 | 1,541 | 1,591 | 1.4 | 1.2 | 1.2
Total private.....| 1,624 | 1,447 | 1,478 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 1.4
Government(c).....|. 131 | 94 | 113 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.5
--------------------------------------------------------------------
p = Preliminary
c = Data from October 2008 through December 2010 have been corrected.
The other separations series is not seasonally adjusted. In February,
there were 292,000 other separations for total nonfarm, 255,000 for
total private, and 37,000 for government. Compared to February 2010,
the number of other separations was little changed for total nonfarm,
total private, and government. (See table 10.)
Relative Contributions to Separations
The total separations level is influenced by the relative contribution
of its three components—quits, layoffs and discharges, and other
separations. The percentage of total separations at the total nonfarm
level attributable to the individual components has varied over time,
but for the majority of the months since the series began in December
2000, the proportion of quits has exceeded the proportion of layoffs
- 4 -
and discharges. Other separations is historically a very small portion
of total separations; it has rarely been above 10 percent of the
total.
Over the last several months, the proportions of quits and of layoffs
and discharges at the total nonfarm level have diverged, returning to
their historical pattern. In February, the proportion of quits for
total nonfarm was 51 percent and the proportion of layoffs and
discharges was 42 percent. The proportion of quits for total private
was 52 percent and the proportion of layoffs and discharges was 42
percent. For government, the proportions were 41 percent quits and 40
percent layoffs and discharges. (See table C below.)
Table C. Quits and layoffs and discharges as a percentage of total separations, seasonally adjusted
(Levels in thousands)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Quits | Layoffs and discharges
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Feb. | Jan. | Feb. | Feb. | Jan. | Feb.
| 2010 | 2011 | 2011p | 2010 | 2011 | 2011p
Industry | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| |Portion | |Portion | |Portion | |Portion | |Portion | |Portion
| Level |of total| Level |of total| Level |of total| Level |of total| Level |of total| Level |of total
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total(c)...........|.1,782 | 47% | 1,679 | 46% | 1,924 | 51% | 1,755 | 46% | 1,541 | 43% | 1,591 | 42%
Total private.....| 1,659 | 48% | 1,572 | 47% | 1,809 | 52% | 1,624 | 47% | 1,447 | 43% | 1,478 | 42%
Government(c).....|. 124 | 40% | 107 | 39% | 115 | 41% | 131 | 42% | 94 | 34% | 113 | 40%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
p = Preliminary
c = Data from October 2008 through December 2010 have been corrected.
Net Change in Employment
Over the 12 months ending in February, hires (not seasonally adjusted)
totaled 47.6 million and separations (not seasonally adjusted) totaled
46.4 million, a net employment gain of 1.2 million at the total
nonfarm level. These figures include workers who may have been hired
and separated more than once during the year. Nearly half of the hires
and nearly half of the separations during these 12 months occurred in
three industries: retail trade; professional and business services;
and accommodation and food services. The large share of total hires
and separations accounted for by these three industries reflects the
size of the industries as well as their relatively high hires and
separations rates.
____________
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey results for March 2011 are
scheduled to be released on Wednesday, May 11, 2011 at 10:00 a.m.
(EDT).
________________________________________________________________________
| Corrections to the JOLTS Data |
| |
|Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) data published in the |
|January 2011 news release on Friday, March 11, 2011, were found to |
|contain errors. The seasonally adjusted government and total nonfarm |
|levels and rates did not include input from the 2010 decennial census |
|in the January 2011 data and the revised data for October 2008 through|
|December 2010. Monthly not seasonally adjusted estimates, as well as |
|annual estimates, which are calculated from not seasonally adjusted |
|estimates, were not affected by the error. Private sector estimates |
|also were not affected by the error. |
| |
|All data in today’s release reflect the corrections. Also, corrected |
|data have been loaded into the JOLTS database at |
|www.bls.gov/jlt/data.htm. |
________________________________________________________________________
- 5 -
Technical Note
The data for the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS)
are collected and compiled monthly from a sample of business
establishments by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Collection
In a monthly survey of business establishments, data are
collected for total employment, job openings, hires, quits, layoffs
and discharges, and other separations. Data collection methods
include computer-assisted telephone interviewing, touchtone data
entry, web, fax, e-mail, and mail.
Coverage
The JOLTS program covers all private nonfarm establishments such
as factories, offices, and stores, as well as federal, state, and
local government entities in the 50 states and the District of
Columbia.
Concepts
Industry classification. The industry classifications in this
release are in accordance with the 2007 version of the North
American Industry Classification System (NAICS). In order to
ensure the highest possible quality of data, State Workforce
Agencies verify with employers and update, if necessary, the
industry code, location, and ownership classification of all
establishments on a 3-year cycle. Changes in establishment
characteristics resulting from the verification process are always
introduced into the JOLTS sampling frame with the data reported for
the first month of the year.
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. Establishments submit job openings information 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
regardless of whether a suitable candidate is found, 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. Hires are 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. Separations are the total number of terminations of
employment occurring at any time during the reference month, and
are reported by type of separation--quits, layoffs and discharges,
and other separations. Quits are voluntary separations by
employees (except for retirements, which are reported as other
separations). Layoffs and discharges are involuntary separations
initiated by the employer and include 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.
Other separations include retirements, transfers to other
locations, deaths, and separations due to disability. Separations
do not include transfers within the same location or employees on
strike.
- 6 -
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, dividing the number by employment and
multiplying by 100.
Annual estimates. Annual estimates of rates and levels of hires,
quits, layoffs and discharges, other separations, and total
separations are released with the January news release each year.
The JOLTS annual level estimates for hires, quits, layoffs and
discharges, other separations, and total separations are the sum of
the 12 published monthly levels. The annual rate estimates 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. Note that both the JOLTS and CES
annual levels are rounded to the nearest thousand before the annual
estimates are calculated. Consistent with BLS practices, annual
estimates are published only for not seasonally adjusted data.
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. Only jobs still open on the last day
of the month are counted. For the same reason job openings cannot
be cumulated throughout each month, annual figures for job openings
cannot be created by summing the monthly estimates. Hires and
separations are flow measures and are cumulated over the month with
a total reported for the month. Therefore, the annual figures can
be created by summing the monthly estimates.
Special collection procedures
An implied measure of employment change can be derived from the
JOLTS data by subtracting separations from hires for a given
month. Aggregating these monthly changes historically produced
employment levels that overstated employment change as measured by
CES at the total nonfarm level. Research into this problem showed
that a significant amount of the divergence between the CES
employment levels and the derived JOLTS employment levels was
traceable to the Employment Services industry and to the State
Government Education industry. In the former industry, businesses
have a difficult time reporting hires and separations of temporary
help workers. In the latter industry, employers have difficulty
reporting hires and separations of student workers. BLS now
devotes additional resources to the collection, editing, and review
of data for these industries. BLS analysts more closely examine
reported data that do not provide a consistent picture over time,
and re-contact the respondents as necessary. Analysts work with
the respondents to adjust their reporting practices as possible.
Units that cannot be reconciled but are clearly incorrect on a
consistent basis are not used, they are replaced by imputed values
using standard techniques.
Sample and estimation methodology
The JOLTS survey design is a random sample of 16,000 nonfarm
business establishments, including factories, offices, and stores,
as well as federal, state, and local governments in the 50 states
and the District of Columbia. The establishments are drawn from a
universe of over 9.1 million establishments compiled as part of the
operations of the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW)
program. This program includes all employers subject to state
Unemployment Insurance (UI) laws and federal agencies subject to
Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE).
The sampling frame is stratified by ownership, region, industry
sector, and size class. The JOLTS sample is constructed from
individual panels of sample units drawn on an annual basis. The
full annual sample consists of one certainty panel composed of only
large units selected with virtual certainty based on their size and
24 non-certainty panels. Each month a new non-certainty panel is
rolled into collection, and the oldest non-certainty panel is
rolled out. This means that at any given time the JOLTS sample is
constructed from panels from three different annual sampling
frames. The entire sample of old plus new panels is post-
stratified and re-weighted annually to represent the most recent
sampling frame. Additionally, the out-of-business establishments
are removed from the old panels. The annual sample is supplemented
with a quarterly sample of birth establishments (i.e., new
establishments) to better reflect the impact of younger
establishments in the JOLTS sample.
JOLTS total employment estimates are benchmarked monthly to the
employment estimates of the Current Employment Statistics (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 sepa-
- 7 -
rations from these units during their early existence. BLS has
developed a model to estimate birth/death activity for current
months by examining the birth/death activity from previous years on the
QCEW and projecting forward to the present using an econometric technique
known as X-12 ARIMA modeling. The birth/death model also uses historical
JOLTS data to estimate the amount of “churn” (hires and separations) that
exists in establishments of various sizes. The model then combines
the estimated churn with the projected employment change to
estimate the number of hires and separations taking place in these
units that cannot be measured through sampling.
The model-based estimate of total separations is distributed to
the three components–-quits; layoffs and discharges; and other
separations--in proportion to their contribution to the sample-
based estimate of total separations. Additionally, job openings
for the modeled units are estimated by computing the ratio of
openings to hires in the collected data and applying that ratio to
the modeled hires. The estimates of job openings, hires, and
separations produced by the birth/death model are then added to the
sample-based estimates produced from the survey to arrive at the
estimates for openings, hires, and separations.
Seasonal adjustment
BLS seasonally adjusts several JOLTS series using the X-12 ARIMA
seasonal adjustment program. Seasonal adjustment is the process of
estimating and removing periodic fluctuations caused by events such
as weather, holidays, and the beginning and ending of the school
year. Seasonal adjustment makes it easier to observe fundamental
changes in the level of the series, particularly those associated
with general economic expansions and contractions. 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 the data for the current month.
JOLTS uses moving averages as seasonal filters in seasonal
adjustment. JOLTS seasonal adjustment includes both additive and
multiplicative seasonal adjustment models and REGARIMA (regression
with autocorrelated 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
JOLTS hires minus separations should be comparable to the CES net
employment change. However, definitional differences as well as
sampling and non-sampling 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.
The Monthly Alignment 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 trend and the CES net employment change is
calculated. Next, the JOLTS implied employment trend is adjusted to
equal the CES net employment change through a proportional
adjustment. This proportional adjustment procedure adjusts the two
components (hires, separations) proportionally to their
contribution to the total churn (hires plus separations). For
example, if hires are 40 percent of the churn for a given month,
they will receive 40 percent of the needed adjustment and
separations will receive 60 percent of the needed adjustment. 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. The monthly alignment procedure assures a close
match of the JOLTS implied employment trend with the CES trend. The
CES series is considered a highly accurate measure of net
employment change owing to its very large sample size and annual
benchmarking to universe counts of employment from the QCEW
program.
Using JOLTS data
The JOLTS data series on job openings, hires, and separations are
relatively new. The full sample is divided into panels, with one
panel enrolled each month. A full complement of panels for the
original data series based on the 1987 Standard Industrial
Classification (SIC) system was not completely enrolled in the
survey until January 2002. The supplemental panels of
establishments needed to create NAICS estimates were not completely
enrolled until May 2003. The data collected up until those points
are from less than a full sample. Therefore, estimates from
earlier months should be used with caution, as fewer sampled units
were reporting data at that time.
In March 2002, BLS procedures for collecting hires and
separations data were revised to address possible underreporting.
As a result, JOLTS hires and separations estimates for months prior
to March 2002 may not be comparable to estimates for March 2002 and
later.
The federal government reorganization that involved transferring
approximately 180,000 employees to the new Department of Homeland
Security is not reflected in the JOLTS hires and separations
estimates for the
- 8 -
federal government. The Office of Personnel Management's record
shows these transfers were completed in March 2003. The inclusion
of transfers in the JOLTS definitions of hires and separations
is intended to cover ongoing movements of workers between
establishments. The Department of Homeland Security reorganization
was a massive one-time event, and the inclusion of these
intergovernmental transfers would distort the federal government
time series.
Reliability of the estimates
JOLTS estimates are subject to both sampling and nonsampling
error. When a sample rather than the entire population is
surveyed, 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. Estimates of
sampling errors are available upon request.
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(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, seasonally adjusted
Levels(3) (in thousands) Rates
Industry and region Feb. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Feb. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.
2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011p 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011p
Total(c)................................. 2,523 2,756 2,905 2,966 2,921 2,741 3,093 1.9 2.1 2.2 2.2 2.2 2.1 2.3
INDUSTRY
Total private(4)........................ 2,159 2,429 2,560 2,639 2,500 2,418 2,759 2.0 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.3 2.2 2.5
Construction........................... 62 68 69 94 44 60 62 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.7 .8 1.1 1.1
Manufacturing.......................... 156 183 193 213 184 207 204 1.3 1.6 1.6 1.8 1.6 1.7 1.7
Trade, transportation, and utilities(5) 373 419 445 430 463 470 453 1.5 1.7 1.8 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.8
Retail trade.......................... 257 239 272 248 268 263 235 1.8 1.6 1.8 1.7 1.8 1.8 1.6
Professional and business services..... 396 554 575 647 609 459 675 2.3 3.2 3.3 3.7 3.5 2.6 3.8
Education and health services.......... 523 510 569 528 510 482 557 2.6 2.5 2.8 2.6 2.5 2.4 2.7
Leisure and hospitality................ 245 284 274 253 270 301 382 1.9 2.1 2.1 1.9 2.0 2.3 2.8
Arts, entertainment, and recreation... 22 35 27 30 41 39 49 1.1 1.8 1.4 1.5 2.1 2.0 2.5
Accommodation and food services....... 223 248 247 224 229 262 333 2.0 2.2 2.2 2.0 2.0 2.3 2.9
Government(6,c)......................... 364 326 345 327 421 323 334 1.6 1.4 1.5 1.4 1.9 1.4 1.5
State and local government............. 235 239 272 244 319 259 263 1.2 1.2 1.4 1.2 1.6 1.3 1.3
REGION(7)
Northeast(c)........................... 478 559 605 603 548 492 599 1.9 2.2 2.4 2.4 2.2 1.9 2.3
South(c)............................... 857 1,015 1,084 1,053 1,023 960 1,139 1.8 2.1 2.2 2.2 2.1 2.0 2.4
Midwest(c)............................. 501 540 584 634 617 513 622 1.7 1.8 1.9 2.1 2.0 1.7 2.1
West(c)................................ 617 648 740 769 829 573 694 2.1 2.2 2.5 2.6 2.8 2.0 2.4
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 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent seasonal adjustment of the various series and because not all series are shown.
4 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, and other services, not shown separately.
5 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not shown separately.
6 Includes federal government, not shown separately.
7 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
c = Data from October 2008 through December 2010 have been corrected.
Table 2. Hires levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, seasonally adjusted
Levels(3) (in thousands) Rates
Industry and region Feb. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Feb. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.
2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011p 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011p
Total(c)................................. 3,784 3,869 3,865 3,943 3,905 3,769 3,907 2.9 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 2.9 3.0
INDUSTRY
Total private(4)........................ 3,484 3,614 3,580 3,668 3,631 3,494 3,646 3.3 3.4 3.3 3.4 3.4 3.2 3.4
Construction........................... 297 327 331 324 356 254 310 5.4 5.9 6.0 5.9 6.5 4.6 5.6
Manufacturing.......................... 254 240 259 272 264 246 245 2.2 2.1 2.2 2.4 2.3 2.1 2.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities(5) 778 776 777 799 756 783 801 3.2 3.2 3.1 3.2 3.1 3.2 3.2
Retail trade.......................... 534 539 545 548 476 536 533 3.7 3.7 3.8 3.8 3.3 3.7 3.7
Professional and business services..... 717 747 730 761 780 810 812 4.3 4.5 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.8 4.8
Education and health services.......... 457 487 465 491 465 437 464 2.4 2.5 2.4 2.5 2.4 2.2 2.3
Leisure and hospitality................ 584 645 596 590 596 588 610 4.5 4.9 4.6 4.5 4.6 4.5 4.7
Arts, entertainment, and recreation... 80 110 87 94 98 84 97 4.2 5.7 4.6 5.0 5.2 4.5 5.1
Accommodation and food services....... 503 535 508 496 498 504 513 4.6 4.8 4.5 4.4 4.5 4.5 4.6
Government(6,c)......................... 300 255 285 275 274 275 261 1.3 1.1 1.3 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.2
State and local government............. 248 224 250 243 242 242 222 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.1
REGION(7)
Northeast(c)........................... 637 724 690 701 680 633 630 2.6 2.9 2.8 2.8 2.7 2.5 2.5
South(c)............................... 1,322 1,427 1,449 1,572 1,513 1,412 1,442 2.8 3.0 3.1 3.3 3.2 3.0 3.1
Midwest(c)............................. 854 854 880 879 878 920 820 2.9 2.9 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.1 2.8
West(c)................................ 776 852 839 883 806 939 827 2.7 3.0 2.9 3.1 2.8 3.3 2.9
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 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent seasonal adjustment of the various series and because not all series are shown.
4 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, and other services, not shown separately.
5 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not shown separately.
6 Includes federal government, not shown separately.
7 See footnote 7, table 1.
p = Preliminary
c = Data from October 2008 through December 2010 have been corrected.
Table 3. Total separations levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, seasonally adjusted
Levels(3) (in thousands) Rates
Industry and region Feb. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Feb. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.
2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011p 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011p
Total(c)................................. 3,795 3,904 3,702 3,869 3,836 3,612 3,792 2.9 3.0 2.8 3.0 2.9 2.8 2.9
INDUSTRY
Total private(4)........................ 3,486 3,526 3,436 3,568 3,539 3,337 3,512 3.3 3.3 3.2 3.3 3.3 3.1 3.2
Construction........................... 344 330 323 342 393 281 294 6.2 6.0 5.9 6.2 7.2 5.1 5.3
Manufacturing.......................... 263 245 266 265 252 184 229 2.3 2.1 2.3 2.3 2.2 1.6 2.0
Trade, transportation, and utilities(5) 773 763 741 773 718 769 794 3.2 3.1 3.0 3.1 2.9 3.1 3.2
Retail trade.......................... 523 531 527 541 470 527 546 3.6 3.7 3.6 3.7 3.3 3.6 3.8
Professional and business services..... 684 742 709 687 735 756 771 4.1 4.4 4.2 4.1 4.3 4.5 4.5
Education and health services.......... 430 460 408 460 450 394 441 2.2 2.3 2.1 2.3 2.3 2.0 2.2
Leisure and hospitality................ 571 607 613 595 583 596 594 4.4 4.6 4.7 4.6 4.5 4.6 4.5
Arts, entertainment, and recreation... 75 104 106 99 98 92 91 4.0 5.4 5.6 5.2 5.2 4.9 4.8
Accommodation and food services....... 496 503 507 497 485 505 503 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.4 4.3 4.5 4.5
Government(6,c)......................... 309 379 265 300 297 275 280 1.4 1.7 1.2 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.3
State and local government............. 267 266 220 263 269 245 246 1.4 1.4 1.1 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.3
REGION(7)
Northeast(c)........................... 687 664 678 715 598 569 686 2.8 2.7 2.7 2.9 2.4 2.3 2.8
South(c)............................... 1,418 1,456 1,290 1,407 1,476 1,499 1,465 3.0 3.1 2.7 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.1
Midwest(c)............................. 855 902 822 890 841 912 803 2.9 3.1 2.8 3.0 2.8 3.1 2.7
West(c)................................ 893 851 782 829 759 817 846 3.1 3.0 2.7 2.9 2.7 2.9 2.9
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 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent seasonal adjustment of the various series and because not all series are shown.
4 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, and other services, not shown separately.
5 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not shown separately.
6 Includes federal government, not shown separately.
7 See footnote 7, table 1.
p = Preliminary
c = Data from October 2008 through December 2010 have been corrected.
Table 4. Quits levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, seasonally adjusted
Levels(3) (in thousands) Rates
Industry and region Feb. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Feb. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.
2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011p 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2011 2011p
Total(c)................................. 1,782 1,843 1,755 1,756 1,838 1,679 1,924 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.4 1.3 1.5
INDUSTRY
Total private(4)........................ 1,659 1,723 1,654 1,653 1,731 1,572 1,809 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.5 1.6 1.5 1.7
Construction........................... 75 80 77 56 81 56 50 1.4 1.5 1.4 1.0 1.5 1.0 .9
Manufacturing.......................... 98 93 95 103 107 83 86 .9 .8 .8 .9 .9 .7 .7
Trade, transportation, and utilities(5) 427 411 376 388 373 338 464 1.7 1.7 1.5 1.6 1.5 1.4 1.9
Retail trade.......................... 331 319 291 292 274 240 335 2.3 2.2 2.0 2.0 1.9 1.7 2.3
Professional and business services..... 288 337 342 317 335 361 405 1.7 2.0 2.0 1.9 2.0 2.1 2.4
Education and health services.......... 237 235 228 248 244 206 239 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.3 1.2 1.0 1.2
Leisure and hospitality................ 361 358 357 335 368 352 362 2.8 2.7 2.7 2.6 2.8 2.7 2.8
Arts, entertainment, and recreation... 34 38 43 37 41 28 36 1.8 2.0 2.2 2.0 2.2 1.5 1.9
Accommodation and food services....... 327 320 314 297 327 324 327 3.0 2.9 2.8 2.7 2.9 2.9 2.9
Government(6,c)......................... 124 120 101 102 107 107 115 .6 .5 .5 .5 .5 .5 .5
State and local government............. 110 106 89 91 98 100 106 .6 .5 .5 .5 .5 .5 .5
REGION(7)
Northeast(c)........................... 325 262 266 248 251 214 345 1.3 1.1 1.1 1.0 1.0 .9 1.4
South(c)............................... 751 762 679 702 761 656 796 1.6 1.6 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.4 1.7
Midwest(c)............................. 415 374 415 403 411 368 466 1.4 1.3 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.2 1.6
West(c)................................ 427 382 377 367 343 366 445 1.5 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.6
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 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent seasonal adjustment of the various series and because not all series are shown.
4 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, and other services, not shown separately.
5 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not shown separately.
6 Includes federal government, not shown separately.
7 See footnote 7, table 1.
p = Preliminary
c = Data from October 2008 through December 2010 have been corrected.
Table 5. Job openings levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted
Levels (in thousands) Rates
Industry and region Feb. Jan. Feb. Feb. Jan. Feb.
2010 2011 2011p 2010 2011 2011p
Total........................................... 2,441 2,870 3,052 1.9 2.2 2.3
INDUSTRY
Total private.................................. 2,086 2,551 2,730 1.9 2.3 2.5
Mining and Logging............................ 10 32 19 1.5 4.2 2.6
Construction.................................. 62 56 60 1.2 1.1 1.2
Manufacturing................................. 153 222 203 1.3 1.9 1.7
Durable goods................................ 90 152 131 1.3 2.1 1.8
Nondurable goods............................. 63 70 72 1.4 1.6 1.6
Trade, transportation, and utilities.......... 343 450 440 1.4 1.8 1.8
Wholesale trade.............................. 61 122 127 1.1 2.2 2.3
Retail trade................................. 227 249 205 1.6 1.7 1.4
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities... 56 79 108 1.2 1.6 2.2
Information................................... 73 84 84 2.6 3.1 3.0
Financial activities.......................... 132 248 173 1.7 3.2 2.2
Finance and insurance........................ 104 219 138 1.8 3.7 2.4
Real estate and rental and leasing........... 28 29 35 1.5 1.5 1.8
Professional and business services............ 389 527 678 2.3 3.1 3.9
Education and health services................. 522 519 566 2.6 2.6 2.8
Educational services......................... 66 62 67 2.0 1.9 2.0
Health care and social assistance............ 455 457 500 2.7 2.7 2.9
Leisure and hospitality....................... 229 283 373 1.8 2.2 2.9
Arts, entertainment, and recreation.......... 20 34 47 1.2 2.0 2.7
Accommodation and food services............. 209 249 326 1.9 2.3 2.9
Other services................................ 173 132 133 3.2 2.4 2.4
Government..................................... 355 318 322 1.5 1.4 1.4
Federal....................................... 133 70 71 4.5 2.4 2.4
State and local............................... 222 249 251 1.1 1.3 1.3
REGION (3)
Northeast..................................... 464 588 577 1.9 2.3 2.3
South......................................... 844 1,038 1,133 1.8 2.2 2.4
Midwest....................................... 496 572 630 1.7 1.9 2.1
West.......................................... 636 672 713 2.2 2.3 2.5
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 See footnote 7, table 1.
p = preliminary.
Table 6. Hires levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted
Levels (in thousands) Rates
Industry and region Feb. Jan. Feb. Feb. Jan. Feb.
2010 2011 2011p 2010 2011 2011p
Total........................................... 3,133 3,589 3,291 2.5 2.8 2.6
INDUSTRY
Total private.................................. 2,920 3,325 3,111 2.8 3.1 2.9
Mining and Logging............................ 19 19 18 2.9 2.7 2.5
Construction.................................. 238 228 247 4.7 4.5 4.9
Manufacturing................................. 229 270 220 2.0 2.3 1.9
Durable goods................................ 123 173 137 1.8 2.4 1.9
Nondurable goods............................. 106 97 83 2.4 2.2 1.9
Trade, transportation, and utilities.......... 585 635 626 2.4 2.6 2.6
Wholesale trade.............................. 105 128 122 1.9 2.4 2.2
Retail trade................................. 395 412 397 2.8 2.9 2.8
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities... 85 95 107 1.8 2.0 2.2
Information................................... 39 58 45 1.4 2.2 1.7
Financial activities.......................... 126 139 118 1.7 1.8 1.6
Finance and insurance........................ 80 88 76 1.4 1.6 1.3
Real estate and rental and leasing........... 45 50 42 2.4 2.7 2.2
Professional and business services............ 648 906 749 4.0 5.5 4.5
Education and health services................. 401 427 404 2.1 2.2 2.0
Educational services......................... 57 76 67 1.7 2.4 2.0
Health care and social assistance............ 344 351 337 2.1 2.1 2.0
Leisure and hospitality....................... 497 474 527 4.0 3.8 4.2
Arts, entertainment, and recreation.......... 54 61 64 3.2 3.7 3.8
Accommodation and food services............. 443 413 462 4.2 3.8 4.3
Other services................................ 138 169 158 2.6 3.2 2.9
Government..................................... 213 265 180 .9 1.2 .8
Federal....................................... 40 32 27 1.4 1.1 1.0
State and local............................... 173 232 152 .9 1.2 .8
REGION (3)
Northeast..................................... 511 558 512 2.1 2.3 2.1
South......................................... 1,188 1,406 1,323 2.6 3.0 2.8
Midwest....................................... 749 802 721 2.6 2.7 2.5
West.......................................... 685 824 735 2.4 2.9 2.6
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 See footnote 7, table 1.
p = preliminary.
Table 7. Total separations levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted
Levels (in thousands) Rates
Industry and region Feb. Jan. Feb. Feb. Jan. Feb.
2010 2011 2011p 2010 2011 2011p
Total........................................... 3,059 4,319 3,089 2.4 3.4 2.4
INDUSTRY
Total private.................................. 2,877 4,049 2,925 2.7 3.8 2.7
Mining and Logging............................ 15 17 15 2.3 2.3 2.0
Construction.................................. 297 381 249 5.8 7.5 4.9
Manufacturing................................. 235 250 200 2.1 2.2 1.7
Durable goods................................ 132 130 114 1.9 1.8 1.6
Nondurable goods............................. 103 120 86 2.3 2.7 2.0
Trade, transportation, and utilities.......... 645 1,040 684 2.7 4.2 2.8
Wholesale trade.............................. 120 134 120 2.2 2.5 2.2
Retail trade................................. 436 726 466 3.1 5.1 3.3
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities... 90 180 99 1.9 3.8 2.1
Information................................... 45 82 42 1.6 3.1 1.6
Financial activities.......................... 138 198 113 1.8 2.6 1.5
Finance and insurance........................ 85 108 72 1.5 1.9 1.3
Real estate and rental and leasing........... 53 90 41 2.8 4.8 2.1
Professional and business services............ 579 850 676 3.6 5.1 4.0
Education and health services................. 345 427 350 1.8 2.2 1.8
Educational services......................... 31 63 45 1.0 2.0 1.3
Health care and social assistance............ 314 364 305 1.9 2.2 1.8
Leisure and hospitality....................... 432 611 447 3.5 4.9 3.6
Arts, entertainment, and recreation.......... 42 76 47 2.5 4.6 2.8
Accommodation and food services............. 391 535 399 3.7 5.0 3.7
Other services................................ 145 194 150 2.7 3.6 2.8
Government..................................... 182 270 163 .8 1.2 .7
Federal....................................... 29 42 24 1.0 1.5 .8
State and local............................... 153 228 140 .8 1.2 .7
REGION (3)
Northeast..................................... 511 674 517 2.1 2.8 2.1
South......................................... 1,156 1,735 1,224 2.5 3.7 2.6
Midwest....................................... 679 1,064 631 2.3 3.6 2.2
West.......................................... 713 846 717 2.5 3.0 2.5
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 See footnote 7, table 1.
p = preliminary.
Table 8. Quits levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted
Levels (in thousands) Rates
Industry and region Feb. Jan. Feb. Feb. Jan. Feb.
2010 2011 2011p 2010 2011 2011p
Total........................................... 1,392 1,745 1,552 1.1 1.4 1.2
INDUSTRY
Total private.................................. 1,308 1,634 1,472 1.2 1.5 1.4
Mining and Logging............................ 6 6 10 .9 .9 1.4
Construction.................................. 59 49 38 1.2 1.0 .8
Manufacturing................................. 84 85 73 .7 .7 .6
Durable goods................................ 43 44 41 .6 .6 .6
Nondurable goods............................. 41 41 32 .9 .9 .7
Trade, transportation, and utilities.......... 337 374 378 1.4 1.5 1.5
Wholesale trade.............................. 34 51 56 .6 .9 1.0
Retail trade................................. 260 270 267 1.8 1.9 1.9
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities... 43 53 55 .9 1.1 1.2
Information................................... 20 29 23 .7 1.1 .9
Financial activities.......................... 59 74 51 .8 1.0 .7
Finance and insurance........................ 33 44 37 .6 .8 .7
Real estate and rental and leasing........... 26 29 14 1.4 1.5 .7
Professional and business services............ 234 352 343 1.4 2.1 2.0
Education and health services................. 184 222 188 .9 1.1 .9
Educational services......................... 19 30 20 .6 1.0 .6
Health care and social assistance............ 165 192 169 1.0 1.2 1.0
Leisure and hospitality....................... 282 349 289 2.3 2.8 2.3
Arts, entertainment, and recreation.......... 21 23 22 1.2 1.4 1.3
Accommodation and food services............. 261 326 267 2.5 3.0 2.5
Other services................................ 43 93 78 .8 1.7 1.4
Government..................................... 84 111 80 .4 .5 .4
Federal....................................... 10 12 8 .4 .4 .3
State and local............................... 74 100 72 .4 .5 .4
REGION (3)
Northeast..................................... 198 238 223 .8 1.0 .9
South......................................... 574 716 633 1.2 1.5 1.4
Midwest....................................... 297 396 345 1.0 1.4 1.2
West.......................................... 323 396 351 1.2 1.4 1.2
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 See footnote 7, table 1.
p = preliminary.
Table 9. Layoffs and discharges levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted
Levels (in thousands) Rates
Industry and region Feb. Jan. Feb. Feb. Jan. Feb.
2010 2011 2011p 2010 2011 2011p
Total........................................... 1,394 2,112 1,244 1.1 1.6 1.0
INDUSTRY
Total private.................................. 1,337 2,025 1,198 1.3 1.9 1.1
Mining and Logging............................ 8 9 3 1.2 1.2 .4
Construction.................................. 221 320 206 4.3 6.3 4.1
Manufacturing................................. 137 139 106 1.2 1.2 .9
Durable goods................................ 80 70 58 1.2 1.0 .8
Nondurable goods............................. 57 69 48 1.3 1.6 1.1
Trade, transportation, and utilities.......... 240 551 246 1.0 2.2 1.0
Wholesale trade.............................. 68 48 48 1.3 .9 .9
Retail trade................................. 133 393 164 .9 2.7 1.2
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities... 39 110 33 .8 2.3 .7
Information................................... 21 35 15 .8 1.3 .6
Financial activities.......................... 50 102 44 .7 1.4 .6
Finance and insurance........................ 28 47 24 .5 .8 .4
Real estate and rental and leasing........... 22 56 19 1.1 2.9 1.0
Professional and business services............ 304 415 279 1.9 2.5 1.7
Education and health services................. 133 137 110 .7 .7 .6
Educational services......................... 10 23 21 .3 .7 .6
Health care and social assistance............ 123 114 88 .8 .7 .5
Leisure and hospitality....................... 129 235 126 1.0 1.9 1.0
Arts, entertainment, and recreation.......... 19 49 19 1.1 3.0 1.1
Accommodation and food services............. 110 186 107 1.0 1.7 1.0
Other services................................ 95 82 63 1.8 1.5 1.2
Government..................................... 57 87 46 .2 .4 .2
Federal....................................... 9 13 6 .3 .5 .2
State and local............................... 48 74 40 .2 .4 .2
REGION (3)
Northeast..................................... 259 356 252 1.1 1.5 1.0
South......................................... 484 864 468 1.0 1.9 1.0
Midwest....................................... 327 526 230 1.1 1.8 .8
West.......................................... 324 366 294 1.2 1.3 1.0
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 See footnote 7, table 1.
p = preliminary.
Table 10. Other separations levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted
Levels (in thousands) Rates
Industry and region Feb. Jan. Feb. Feb. Jan. Feb.
2010 2011 2011p 2010 2011 2011p
Total........................................... 273 462 292 0.2 0.4 0.2
INDUSTRY
Total private.................................. 232 391 255 .2 .4 .2
Mining and Logging............................ 1 1 1 .2 .2 .2
Construction.................................. 16 12 5 .3 .2 .1
Manufacturing................................. 15 25 21 .1 .2 .2
Durable goods................................ 9 16 15 .1 .2 .2
Nondurable goods............................. 6 9 6 .1 .2 .1
Trade, transportation, and utilities.......... 67 116 60 .3 .5 .2
Wholesale trade.............................. 18 35 16 .3 .6 .3
Retail trade................................. 42 63 34 .3 .4 .2
Transportation, warehousing, and utilities... 7 18 10 .2 .4 .2
Information................................... 4 18 4 .2 .7 .1
Financial activities.......................... 30 22 18 .4 .3 .2
Finance and insurance........................ 24 17 10 .4 .3 .2
Real estate and rental and leasing........... 6 5 8 .3 .3 .4
Professional and business services............ 42 83 54 .3 .5 .3
Education and health services................. 28 68 52 .1 .3 .3
Educational services......................... 2 10 4 .1 .3 .1
Health care and social assistance............ 26 58 48 .2 .4 .3
Leisure and hospitality....................... 21 27 32 .2 .2 .3
Arts, entertainment, and recreation.......... 2 4 7 .1 .2 .4
Accommodation and food services............. 19 23 25 .2 .2 .2
Other services................................ 7 20 9 .1 .4 .2
Government..................................... 41 71 37 .2 .3 .2
Federal....................................... 10 17 10 .3 .6 .4
State and local............................... 31 54 27 .2 .3 .1
REGION (3)
Northeast..................................... 55 80 40 .2 .3 .2
South......................................... 98 155 124 .2 .3 .3
Midwest....................................... 54 143 56 .2 .5 .2
West.......................................... 66 84 72 .2 .3 .3
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 See footnote 7, table 1.
p = preliminary.
United States Department of Labor
