Table 5. Components of private sector gross job gains and losses by firm size, seasonally adjusted
Gross job gains and job losses Gross job gains and job losses
(in thousands) as a percent of employment
Category 3 months ended 3 months ended
Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec. Dec. Mar. June Sept. Dec.
2022 2023 2023 2023 2023 2022 2023 2023 2023 2023
Total private by firm(1)
Gross job gains 6,291 6,556 6,450 5,925 6,094 4.8 5.1 5.0 4.6 4.6
At expanding firms 5,229 5,556 5,455 4,926 5,043 4.0 4.3 4.2 3.8 3.8
At opening firms 1,062 1,000 995 999 1,051 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8
Gross job losses 5,831 5,452 6,167 6,171 5,802 4.5 4.2 4.7 4.7 4.4
At contracting firms 4,880 4,473 5,157 5,154 4,871 3.8 3.4 3.9 3.9 3.7
At closing firms 951 979 1,010 1,017 931 0.7 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.7
Net employment change 460 1,104 283 -246 292 0.3 0.9 0.3 -0.1 0.2
Firm size 1 to 49 employees
Gross job gains 3,305 3,333 3,237 3,019 3,232 9.3 9.4 9.1 8.5 9.2
At expanding firms 2,278 2,366 2,280 2,065 2,219 6.4 6.7 6.4 5.8 6.3
At opening firms 1,027 967 957 954 1,013 2.9 2.7 2.7 2.7 2.9
Gross job losses 3,099 3,016 3,237 3,223 3,011 8.8 8.5 9.1 9.1 8.4
At contracting firms 2,181 2,066 2,270 2,243 2,109 6.2 5.8 6.4 6.3 5.9
At closing firms 918 950 967 980 902 2.6 2.7 2.7 2.8 2.5
Net employment change 206 317 0 -204 221 0.5 0.9 0.0 -0.6 0.8
Firm size 50 to 249 employees
Gross job gains 1,128 1,184 1,170 1,034 1,099 5.0 5.2 5.2 4.6 4.8
At expanding firms 1,095 1,153 1,134 998 1,064 4.9 5.1 5.0 4.4 4.6
At opening firms 33 31 36 36 35 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.2 0.2
Gross job losses 971 909 1,037 1,060 987 4.3 4.0 4.5 4.6 4.3
At contracting firms 941 884 1,003 1,029 960 4.2 3.9 4.4 4.5 4.2
At closing firms 30 25 34 31 27 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1
Net employment change 157 275 133 -26 112 0.7 1.2 0.7 0.0 0.5
Firm size 250 or more employees
Gross job gains 1,858 2,039 2,043 1,872 1,763 2.6 2.8 2.8 2.6 2.4
At expanding firms 1,856 2,037 2,041 1,863 1,760 2.6 2.8 2.8 2.6 2.4
At opening firms 2 2 2 9 3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Gross job losses 1,761 1,527 1,893 1,888 1,804 2.5 2.1 2.6 2.6 2.5
At contracting firms 1,758 1,523 1,884 1,882 1,802 2.5 2.1 2.6 2.6 2.5
At closing firms 3 4 9 6 2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Net employment change 97 512 150 -16 -41 0.1 0.7 0.2 0.0 -0.1
(1) Total gross job gains and gross job losses by firm are lower than total gross job gains and gross job losses by
establishment, as some establishment gains and losses within a firm are offset during the aggregation process.
NOTE: Net change is the difference between total gross job gains and total gross job losses. Net change totals for
the firm-level data differ from the establishment-level data due to independent seasonal adjustment. The unit of
analysis section in the technical note provides additional detail. See www.bls.gov/bdm/bdmfirmsize.htm for more
detailed firm size class data.
United States Department of Labor
