For release 10:00 a.m. (ET) Tuesday, March 11, 2025 USDL-25-0331
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 – JANUARY 2025
The number of job openings was little changed at 7.7 million in January, the U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics reported today. Hires held at 5.4 million, and total separations changed little at 5.3 million.
Within separations, quits (3.3 million) and layoffs and discharges (1.6 million) changed little.
This release includes estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the
total nonfarm sector, by industry, and by establishment size class. This release also includes 2024 annual
estimates for job openings, hires, and separations. Job openings include all positions that are open on the
last business day of the month. Hires and separations include all changes to the payroll during the entire
month.
Job Openings
The number of job openings was little changed at 7.7 million in January but was down by 728,000 over
the year. The job openings rate, at 4.6 percent, changed little over the month. The number of job
openings increased in real estate and rental and leasing (+46,000). (See table 1.)
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
| Changes to the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey Data |
| |
|Effective with this release, the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) estimates will |
|incorporate the annual updates to the Current Employment Statistics employment data and the JOLTS |
|seasonal adjustment factors. Not seasonally adjusted data and seasonally adjusted data from January |
|2020 forward are subject to revision. |
|_____________________________________________________________________________________________________|
Hires
In January, the number and rate of hires were unchanged at 5.4 million and 3.4 percent, respectively.
Hires decreased in mining and logging (-6,000). (See table 2.)
Separations
Total separations include quits, layoffs and discharges, and other separations. 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 include separations due to retirement, death, disability, and transfers
to other locations of the same firm.
The number and rate of total separations in January were little changed at 5.3 million and 3.3 percent,
respectively. (See table 3.)
In January, the number and rate of quits were little changed at 3.3 million and 2.1 percent, respectively.
Quits increased in construction (+53,000) and in mining and logging (+6,000). (See table 4.)
In January, the number and rate of layoffs and discharges changed little at 1.6 million and 1.0 percent,
respectively. Layoffs and discharges decreased in mining and logging (-8,000). (See table 5.)
The number of other separations changed little at 350,000 in January. (See table 6.)
Establishment Size Class
In January, the quits rate increased for establishments with 1 to 9 employees, while the job openings,
hires, layoffs and discharges, and total separations rates showed little change. For establishments with
5,000 or more employees, all rates showed little or no change. (See table 7.)
December 2024 Revisions
The number of job openings for December was revised down by 92,000 to 7.5 million, the number of
hires was revised down by 88,000 to 5.4 million, and the number of total separations was revised down
by 187,000 to 5.1 million. Within separations, the number of quits was revised down by 102,000 to 3.1
million, and the number of layoffs and discharges was revised down by 102,000 to 1.7 million. (Monthly
revisions result from additional reports received from businesses and government agencies since the last
published estimates and from the recalculation of seasonal factors.)
Annual Levels and Rates
Consistent with BLS practice, annual estimates are published for not seasonally adjusted data each year
with the January news release. For details about how these estimates are calculated, see the technical
note.
In 2024, the annual average job openings level was 7.8 million, a decrease of 1.5 million from 2023. The
annual average job openings rate was 4.7 percent in 2024, compared to 5.6 percent in 2023.
(See tables 15 and 16.)
In 2024, the annual hires level was 65.3 million, a decrease of 5.1 million from 2023. Annual total
separations decreased by 4.6 million in 2024 to 63.2 million. Annual quits decreased by 5.0 million in
2024 to 39.2 million and accounted for 62.0 percent of total separations. Annual layoffs and discharges
increased by 402,000 in 2024 to 20.2 million and accounted for 31.9 percent of total separations. Annual
other separations decreased by 5,000 in 2024 to 3.8 million and accounted for 6.1 percent of total
separations. (See tables 17 through 26.)
The annual average hires rate for 2024 was 3.4 percent, down from 3.8 percent in 2023. The annual
average total separations rate for 2024 was 3.3 percent, compared to 3.6 percent in 2023. The 2024
annual average rates for the components of total separations were 2.1 percent for quits, 1.1 percent for
layoffs and discharges, and 0.2 percent for other separations. (See tables 17 through 26.)
____________
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey estimates for February 2025 are scheduled to be
released on Tuesday, April 1, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. (ET).
Annual Revisions to Job Openings and Labor Turnover Data
The JOLTS data are revised annually to reflect updates to the Current Employment Statistics (CES)
employment estimates. The JOLTS employment levels (not published) are ratio-adjusted to the CES
employment levels, and the resulting ratios are applied to all JOLTS data elements. This annual
benchmarking process results in revisions to both the seasonally adjusted and not seasonally adjusted
JOLTS data series. The seasonally adjusted data are recalculated for the most recent 5 years to reflect
updated seasonal adjustment factors. Further, the alignment methodology creates a dependency of the
not seasonally adjusted estimates on the seasonal adjustment process. Therefore, the data series that are
not seasonally adjusted are also recalculated for the most recent 5 years to reflect the effect of the
updated seasonal adjustment factors on the alignment process.
Tables B through G below present revised total nonfarm data for January through December 2024. The
December 2024 revisions also reflect the routine incorporation of additional sample receipts into the
final December estimates. Tables presenting revisions to total nonfarm data for January 2020 through
December 2024 will be available on the JOLTS website later in the day following the release. The
website also contains all revised seasonally adjusted and not seasonally adjusted data. The revision
tables and data can be accessed through the JOLTS homepage at www.bls.gov/jlt/.
Table A. Job openings, hires, and total separations by industry, seasonally adjusted
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Job openings | Hires | Total separations
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Category |Jan. |Dec. |Jan. |Jan. |Dec. |Jan. |Jan. |Dec. |Jan.
|2024 |2024 |2025p |2024 |2024 |2025p |2024 |2024 |2025p
--------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------
| | | | | | | | |
LEVELS BY INDUSTRY | | | | | | | | |
(in thousands) | | | | | | | | |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Total...........................|8,468 |7,508 |7,740 |5,572 |5,374 |5,393 |5,429 |5,082 |5,252
| | | | | | | | |
Total private..................|7,577 |6,634 |6,860 |5,181 |4,998 |5,016 |5,095 |4,731 |4,923
Mining and logging............|26 |20 |16 |20 |21 |15 |22 |23 |21
Construction..................|407 |205 |236 |372 |327 |353 |336 |268 |335
Manufacturing.................|556 |431 |462 |384 |300 |332 |374 |315 |324
Durable goods................|326 |291 |317 |208 |155 |195 |212 |175 |194
Nondurable goods.............|230 |140 |144 |176 |145 |137 |162 |141 |130
Trade, transportation, | | | | | | | | |
and utilities................|1,088 |1,079 |1,228 |981 |1,066 |1,082 |1,036 |1,047 |1,072
Wholesale trade..............|179 |180 |226 |147 |136 |158 |159 |131 |162
Retail trade.................|571 |519 |662 |566 |608 |634 |589 |595 |591
Transportation, warehousing, | | | | | | | | |
and utilities...............|338 |380 |340 |267 |322 |291 |287 |321 |319
Information...................|152 |106 |128 |72 |78 |76 |78 |67 |80
Financial activities..........|475 |406 |528 |199 |217 |201 |207 |195 |193
Finance and insurance........|335 |282 |359 |127 |143 |134 |131 |130 |130
Real estate and | | | | | | | | |
rental and leasing..........|140 |124 |170 |73 |73 |66 |76 |66 |62
Professional and business | | | | | | | | |
services.....................|1,443 |1,364 |1,242 |1,037 |935 |971 |1,060 |919 |1,025
Private education and health | | | | | | | | |
services.....................|2,045 |1,585 |1,626 |858 |858 |837 |726 |761 |742
Private educational services.|155 |164 |147 |101 |99 |83 |77 |89 |81
Health care and social | | | | | | | | |
assistance..................|1,890 |1,421 |1,479 |757 |759 |754 |649 |671 |661
Leisure and hospitality.......|1,085 |1,147 |1,101 |1,034 |959 |909 |1,022 |903 |888
Arts, entertainment, and | | | | | | | | |
recreation..................|167 |184 |160 |174 |144 |162 |154 |144 |148
Accommodation and food | | | | | | | | |
services....................|917 |963 |941 |860 |815 |748 |868 |759 |741
Other services................|301 |290 |292 |223 |237 |240 |234 |232 |243
Government.....................|891 |874 |880 |391 |375 |377 |334 |351 |329
Federal.......................|140 |138 |135 |42 |31 |34 |34 |28 |28
State and local...............|751 |736 |745 |349 |344 |343 |300 |324 |301
State and local education....|254 |270 |268 |164 |181 |175 |148 |176 |152
State and local, excluding | | | | | | | | |
education...................|497 |466 |478 |185 |164 |168 |152 |148 |150
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------
| | | | | | | | |
RATES BY INDUSTRY | | | | | | | | |
(percent) | | | | | | | | |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Total...........................|5.1 |4.5 |4.6 |3.5 |3.4 |3.4 |3.5 |3.2 |3.3
| | | | | | | | |
Total private..................|5.4 |4.7 |4.8 |3.9 |3.7 |3.7 |3.8 |3.5 |3.6
Mining and logging............|4.0 |3.1 |2.6 |3.2 |3.4 |2.4 |3.5 |3.7 |3.5
Construction..................|4.8 |2.4 |2.8 |4.6 |4.0 |4.3 |4.1 |3.2 |4.0
Manufacturing.................|4.1 |3.3 |3.5 |3.0 |2.4 |2.6 |2.9 |2.5 |2.5
Durable goods................|3.9 |3.5 |3.9 |2.6 |2.0 |2.5 |2.6 |2.2 |2.5
Nondurable goods.............|4.5 |2.8 |2.9 |3.6 |3.0 |2.8 |3.3 |2.9 |2.7
Trade, transportation, | | | | | | | | |
and utilities................|3.6 |3.6 |4.1 |3.4 |3.7 |3.7 |3.6 |3.6 |3.7
Wholesale trade..............|2.8 |2.8 |3.5 |2.4 |2.2 |2.6 |2.6 |2.1 |2.6
Retail trade.................|3.5 |3.2 |4.1 |3.6 |3.9 |4.1 |3.8 |3.8 |3.8
Transportation, warehousing, | | | | | | | | |
and utilities...............|4.5 |5.0 |4.5 |3.7 |4.4 |4.0 |4.0 |4.4 |4.4
Information...................|4.9 |3.5 |4.2 |2.4 |2.6 |2.6 |2.6 |2.3 |2.7
Financial activities..........|4.9 |4.2 |5.4 |2.2 |2.4 |2.2 |2.3 |2.1 |2.1
Finance and insurance........|4.8 |4.0 |5.1 |1.9 |2.1 |2.0 |2.0 |1.9 |1.9
Real estate and rental | | | | | | | | |
and leasing.................|5.4 |4.8 |6.4 |2.9 |3.0 |2.7 |3.1 |2.6 |2.5
Professional and business | | | | | | | | |
services.....................|6.0 |5.7 |5.2 |4.6 |4.1 |4.3 |4.7 |4.1 |4.5
Private education and health | | | | | | | | |
services.....................|7.3 |5.6 |5.7 |3.3 |3.2 |3.1 |2.8 |2.8 |2.7
Private educational services.|3.8 |4.0 |3.6 |2.6 |2.5 |2.1 |2.0 |2.2 |2.0
Health care and social | | | | | | | | |
assistance..................|7.9 |5.8 |6.0 |3.4 |3.3 |3.3 |2.9 |2.9 |2.9
Leisure and hospitality......|6.1 |6.3 |6.1 |6.2 |5.6 |5.4 |6.1 |5.3 |5.2
Arts, entertainment, and | | | | | | | | |
recreation.................|6.1 |6.5 |5.6 |6.7 |5.4 |6.0 |6.0 |5.4 |5.5
Accommodation and food | | | | | | | | |
services...................|6.1 |6.3 |6.2 |6.1 |5.7 |5.2 |6.1 |5.3 |5.2
Other services...............|4.8 |4.6 |4.6 |3.8 |3.9 |4.0 |4.0 |3.9 |4.0
Government.....................|3.7 |3.6 |3.6 |1.7 |1.6 |1.6 |1.4 |1.5 |1.4
Federal.......................|4.5 |4.4 |4.3 |1.4 |1.0 |1.1 |1.1 |0.9 |0.9
State and local...............|3.6 |3.5 |3.5 |1.7 |1.7 |1.7 |1.5 |1.6 |1.5
State and local education....|2.3 |2.4 |2.4 |1.5 |1.7 |1.6 |1.4 |1.6 |1.4
State and local, excluding | | | | | | | | |
education...................|5.0 |4.6 |4.7 |2.0 |1.7 |1.7 |1.6 |1.5 |1.5
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(p) Preliminary
NOTE: Data are revised with the release of January data to incorporate the annual updates to the Current
Employment Statistics employment estimates and the JOLTS seasonal adjustment factors.
Table B. Revisions in job openings data January 2024 - December 2024,
seasonally adjusted
_________________________________________________________________________________
| |
| Levels (in thousands) | Rates (percent)
Year |---------------------------------- |----------------------------------
and | As | As | | As | As |
month | revised | previously| Difference | revised | previously| Difference
| | published | | | published |
_________________________________________________________________________________
2024 | | | | | |
January...| 8,468 | 8,748 | -280 | 5.1 | 5.3 | -0.2
February..| 8,445 | 8,813 | -368 | 5.1 | 5.3 | -.2
March.....| 8,093 | 8,355 | -262 | 4.9 | 5.0 | -.1
April.....| 7,619 | 7,919 | -300 | 4.6 | 4.8 | -.2
May.......| 7,901 | 8,230 | -329 | 4.8 | 4.9 | -.1
June......| 7,412 | 7,910 | -498 | 4.5 | 4.8 | -.3
July......| 7,504 | 7,711 | -207 | 4.6 | 4.5 | -.1
August....| 7,649 | 7,861 | -212 | 4.6 | 4.7 | -.1
September.| 7,103 | 7,372 | -269 | 4.3 | 4.4 | -.1
October...| 7,615 | 7,839 | -224 | 4.6 | 4.7 | -.1
November..| 8,031 | 8,156 | -125 | 4.8 | 4.9 | -.1
December..| 7,508 | 7,600 | -92 | 4.5 | 4.5 | .0
__________|__________|___________|____________|__________|___________|___________
Table C. Revisions in hires data January 2024 - December 2024,
seasonally adjusted
_________________________________________________________________________________
| |
| Levels (in thousands) | Rates (percent)
Year |---------------------------------- |----------------------------------
and | As | As | | As | As |
month | revised | previously| Difference | revised | previously| Difference
| | published | | | published |
_________________________________________________________________________________
2024 | | | | | |
January...| 5,572 | 5,698 | -126 | 3.5 | 3.6 | -0.1
February..| 5,664 | 5,781 | -117 | 3.6 | 3.7 | -.1
March.....| 5,472 | 5,617 | -145 | 3.5 | 3.6 | -.1
April.....| 5,584 | 5,615 | -31 | 3.5 | 3.5 | .0
May.......| 5,573 | 5,655 | -82 | 3.5 | 3.6 | -.1
June......| 5,088 | 5,248 | -160 | 3.2 | 3.3 | -.1
July......| 5,451 | 5,416 | 35 | 3.4 | 3.4 | .0
August....| 5,230 | 5,435 | -205 | 3.3 | 3.4 | -.1
September.| 5,519 | 5,582 | -63 | 3.5 | 3.5 | .0
October...| 5,350 | 5,394 | -44 | 3.4 | 3.4 | .0
November..| 5,307 | 5,373 | -66 | 3.3 | 3.4 | -.1
December..| 5,374 | 5,462 | -88 | 3.4 | 3.4 | .0
__________|__________|___________|____________|__________|___________|___________
Table D. Revisions in total separations data January 2024 - December 2024,
seasonally adjusted
_________________________________________________________________________________
| |
| Levels (in thousands) | Rates (percent)
Year |---------------------------------- |----------------------------------
and | As | As | | As | As |
month | revised | previously| Difference | revised | previously| Difference
| | published | | | published |
_________________________________________________________________________________
2024 | | | | | |
January...| 5,429 | 5,449 | -20 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 0.0
February..| 5,476 | 5,539 | -63 | 3.5 | 3.5 | .0
March.....| 5,268 | 5,330 | -62 | 3.3 | 3.4 | -.1
April.....| 5,388 | 5,337 | 51 | 3.4 | 3.4 | .0
May.......| 5,314 | 5,397 | -83 | 3.4 | 3.4 | .0
June......| 5,064 | 5,084 | -20 | 3.2 | 3.2 | .0
July......| 5,434 | 5,314 | 120 | 3.4 | 3.4 | .0
August....| 5,170 | 5,168 | 2 | 3.3 | 3.3 | .0
September.| 5,197 | 5,196 | 1 | 3.3 | 3.3 | .0
October...| 5,285 | 5,306 | -21 | 3.3 | 3.3 | .0
November..| 5,087 | 5,231 | -144 | 3.2 | 3.3 | -.1
December..| 5,082 | 5,269 | -187 | 3.2 | 3.3 | -.1
__________|__________|___________|____________|__________|___________|___________
Table E. Revisions in quits data January 2024 - December 2024,
seasonally adjusted
_________________________________________________________________________________
| |
| Levels (in thousands) | Rates (percent)
Year |---------------------------------- |----------------------------------
and | As | As | | As | As |
month | revised | previously| Difference | revised | previously| Difference
| | published | | | published |
_________________________________________________________________________________
2024 | | | | | |
January...| 3,353 | 3,446 | -93 | 2.1 | 2.2 | -0.1
February..| 3,468 | 3,527 | -59 | 2.2 | 2.2 | .0
March.....| 3,329 | 3,409 | -80 | 2.1 | 2.2 | -.1
April.....| 3,414 | 3,452 | -38 | 2.2 | 2.2 | .0
May.......| 3,355 | 3,403 | -48 | 2.1 | 2.1 | .0
June......| 3,284 | 3,214 | 70 | 2.1 | 2.0 | .1
July......| 3,390 | 3,243 | 147 | 2.0 | 2.1 | .1
August....| 3,177 | 3,178 | -1 | 2.0 | 2.0 | .0
September.| 3,085 | 3,098 | -13 | 1.9 | 1.9 | .0
October...| 3,217 | 3,283 | -66 | 2.0 | 2.1 | -.1
November..| 3,032 | 3,130 | -98 | 1.9 | 2.0 | -.1
December..| 3,095 | 3,197 | -102 | 1.9 | 2.0 | -.1
__________|__________|___________|____________|__________|___________|___________
Table F. Revisions in layoffs and discharges data January 2024 - December 2024,
seasonally adjusted
_________________________________________________________________________________
| |
| Levels (in thousands) | Rates (percent)
Year |---------------------------------- |----------------------------------
and | As | As | | As | As |
month | revised | previously| Difference | revised | previously| Difference
| | published | | | published |
_________________________________________________________________________________
2024 | | | | | |
January...| 1,692 | 1,596 | 96 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 0.1
February..| 1,681 | 1,681 | 0 | 1.1 | 1.1 | .0
March.....| 1,614 | 1,601 | 13 | 1.0 | 1.0 | .0
April.....| 1,587 | 1,542 | 45 | 1.0 | 1.0 | .0
May.......| 1,665 | 1,678 | -13 | 1.1 | 1.1 | .0
June......| 1,467 | 1,560 | -93 | .9 | 1.0 | -.1
July......| 1,745 | 1,713 | 32 | 1.1 | 1.1 | .0
August....| 1,697 | 1,668 | 29 | 1.1 | 1.0 | .1
September.| 1,844 | 1,802 | 42 | 1.2 | 1.1 | .1
October...| 1,788 | 1,748 | 40 | 1.1 | 1.1 | .0
November..| 1,739 | 1,800 | -61 | 1.1 | 1.1 | .0
December..| 1,669 | 1,771 | -102 | 1.1 | 1.1 | .0
__________|__________|___________|____________|__________|___________|___________
Table G. Revisions in other separations data January 2024 - December 2024,
seasonally adjusted
_________________________________________________________________________________
| |
| Levels (in thousands) | Rates (percent)
Year |---------------------------------- |----------------------------------
and | As | As | | As | As |
month | revised | previously| Difference | revised | previously| Difference
| | published | | | published |
_________________________________________________________________________________
2024 | | | | | |
January...| 384 | 407 | -23 | 0.2 | 0.3 | -0.1
February..| 327 | 332 | -5 | .2 | .2 | .0
March.....| 325 | 320 | 5 | .2 | .2 | .0
April.....| 386 | 343 | 43 | .2 | .2 | .0
May.......| 294 | 316 | -22 | .2 | .2 | .0
June......| 312 | 310 | 2 | .2 | .2 | .0
July......| 300 | 359 | -59 | .2 | .2 | .0
August....| 295 | 322 | -27 | .2 | .2 | .0
September.| 268 | 296 | -28 | .2 | .2 | .0
October...| 280 | 275 | 5 | .2 | .2 | .0
November..| 316 | 301 | 15 | .2 | .2 | .0
December..| 318 | 302 | 16 | .2 | .2 | .0
__________|__________|___________|____________|__________|___________|___________
United States Department of Labor
