The months fly by; I can tell because before I know it a new report of some type is out. The February Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey is out and the BLS is probably pretty much caught up from the shutdown. The catchup has been accompanied by some wild swings in the numbers. The January job openings number was revised upward by 300,000; making January’s total gain in openings almost 700,000. The total openings in February was down from January’s revised estimate. Job openings were down in state and local government, which is good except that hires were above separations, so a lot of the openings that disappeared were likely filled.
In the private sector, openings were down in manufacturing and hires and separations basically were the same as the prior month. There was a big drop, over 200,000, in food services and accomodations, a highly volatile sector that also saw reduced hiring and separations. Hires were down in construction, professional and business services and health care and social services; and up in financial activities. Separations were down in leisure and entertainment and professional and business services. All in all, it looks like a pretty stable employment market, with a lot of openings, some hiring and some firing and quitting.
Meanwhile, ADP, which provides payroll services for businesses, released its own data on hiring by private employers in March, showing a good gain. Wages also rose at a pace above inflation.
