Job openings fell by only 34,000 in June to 9.58 million, according to the monthly JOLTS report released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The largest drops were in health care and state and local government. Job openings have fallen from the record 12 million in March 2022 but remain above the pre-pandemic level of about 7 million, reflecting a gradually slowing yet still-robust labor market.
The number of people quitting—a measure of worker confidence in the ability to leave one job for another—fell by nearly 300,000 to 3.8 million, with the number of quits falling most in retail and health care. Layoffs remained steady at 1.5 million, which is consistent with the low levels of weekly unemployment claims data.
On Friday, the Department of Labor will report on how many jobs the U.S. economy added in July, the unemployment rate and wage gains for the month.