Employee Tenure Summary

For release 10:00 a.m. (ET) Thursday, September 26, 2024                               USDL-24-1971

Technical information:  (202) 691-6378  *  cpsinfo@bls.gov  *  www.bls.gov/cps 
Media contact:          (202) 691-5902  *  PressOffice@bls.gov


                                  EMPLOYEE TENURE IN 2024


The median number of years that wage and salary workers had been with their current employer
was 3.9 years in January 2024, down from 4.1 years in January 2022 and the lowest since
January 2002, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Chief Evaluation Office sponsored the January 2024 survey to
collect information on employee tenure. Since 1996, these surveys have been conducted
biennially in January as a supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a
monthly sample survey of about 60,000 households that provides information on the labor 
force status of the civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and over. The questions 
about employee tenure measure how long workers had been with their current employer at the
time of the survey. A number of factors can affect median tenure of workers, including changes
in the age profile among workers, as well as changes in the number of hires and separations.
For further information about the CPS, see the Technical Note in this news release.

Demographic Characteristics

In January 2024, median employee tenure (the point at which half of all workers had more
tenure and half had less tenure) for men was 4.2 years, a decrease from 4.3 years in January
2022. For women, median tenure was 3.6 years in January 2024, down from the median of 3.8 
years in January 2022. Among men, 28 percent of wage and salary workers had 10 years or more
of tenure with their current employer in January 2024, higher than the figure for women 
(24 percent). (See tables 1 and 3.)

Median employee tenure was generally higher among older workers than younger ones. For
example, the median tenure of workers ages 55 to 64 (9.6 years) was more than three times
that of workers ages 25 to 34 (2.7 years). Also, a larger proportion of older workers
than younger workers had 10 years or more of tenure. For example, among workers ages 60 to
64, 52 percent had been employed for at least 10 years with their current employer in January
2024, compared with 21 percent of those ages 35 to 39. (See tables 1 and 2.)

Among the major race and ethnicity groups, 28 percent of Whites had been with their current
employer for 10 years or more in January 2024, compared with 25 percent of Asians, 22 percent
of Blacks, and 22 percent of Hispanics. (See table 3.) The higher share of long-tenured 
workers among Whites can be explained, in part, by the fact that they tend to be older. Among
White wage and salary workers, 23 percent were age 55 and over. By comparison, the proportions
for Blacks (19 percent), Asians (18 percent), and Hispanics (16 percent) were smaller.

In January 2024, the share of wage and salary workers with a year or less of tenure with their
current employer was 22 percent, lower than the proportion in January 2022 (24 percent). This
short-tenured group includes new hires, job losers who found new jobs during the previous 
year, and workers who had voluntarily changed employers during the year. Younger workers were
more likely than older workers to be short-tenured employees. For example, in January 2024,
70 percent of 16- to 19-year-olds had tenure of 12 months or less with their current employer,
compared with 10 percent of workers ages 55 to 64. (See table 3.)

Among workers ages 25 and over, women with less than a high school diploma had lower median
tenure (3.8 years) in January 2024 than associate degree holders (4.9 years) and college
graduates (4.7 years). The median tenure for men with less than a high school diploma was
little different than for those with more education. (See table 4.)

Industry

In January 2024, wage and salary workers in the public sector had a median tenure of 6.2
years, nearly twice the median for private-sector employees (3.5 years). One factor behind
this difference is age. About 3 in 4 government workers were age 35 and over, compared with
about 3 in 5 private wage and salary workers. (See table 5.)

Within the private sector, workers in mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction 
(5.7 years), manufacturing (4.9 years), and financial activities (4.7 years) had the highest
tenure among major industries in January 2024. By contrast, workers in leisure and hospitality
had the lowest median tenure (2.1 years). These differences in tenure reflect many factors,
one of which is varying age distributions across the industries; workers in the major 
industries with the highest tenure tend to be older than those in leisure and hospitality.

Occupation

Among the major occupation groups, workers in management, professional, and related 
occupations had the highest median tenure (4.8 years) in January 2024. Within this group,
employees with jobs in management occupations (5.7 years), education, training, and library
occupations (5.3 years), and architecture and engineering occupations (4.9 years) had the
longest tenure. Workers in service occupations, who are generally younger than people employed
in management, professional, and related occupations, had the lowest median tenure (2.7 years).
Among employees working in service occupations, workers in food preparation and serving 
related occupations (2.0 years) and personal care and service occupations (2.5 years) had the
lowest median tenure. (See table 6.)