Some data is starting to dribble out of the Bureau of Labor Statistics as it begins to catch up on missed releases. Yesterday some data on the job openings and labor turnover survey came out. It covered back in August so the environment may have changed significantly since then. The number of job openings, 7.2 million, was essentially unchanged. Both openings and terminations are basically back at close to the levels before the epidemic, so looking pretty normal. Job openings were down significantly in construction and the federal government. Terminations, voluntary and involuntary were up in state and local education, but down in hotel and food services and entertainment. Apparently we won’t get a lot more data until early December, when October numbers will be issued. For now, the labor market doesn’t look particularly strong or weak. (BLS Release)
