In a sign that the Great Resignation continues, the latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary (JOLTS) from the US Department of Labor Statistics told us a few things:

• We have yet to make a dent in the number of job openings
• Layoffs remained flat, and low
• The quits level and rates accelerated to a series high of 4.4 million and 3.0 percent, respectively

That last bullet point is important. While there were signs that return-to-work rates are declining, the acceleration of the quits rate slows down those gains. Positively, we did see a net gain of 248,000 hires over separations (quits, layoffs, etc). That said: the number of still falls close to 4 million below the number of job openings.

Job openings increased in

• Health care and social assistance (+141,000)
• State and local government, excluding education (+114,000)
• Wholesale trade (+51,000) and information (+51,000)

Job openings decreased in

• State and local government education (-114,000)
• Other services (-104,000)
• Real estate and rental and leasing (-65,000
• Educational services(-45,000)

Worker dissatisfaction, Delta among causes for high quits

Indeed Hiring Lab Economic Research Director Nick Bunker: "While demand might have slowed down, workers continue to quit at historic levels, with the quits rate hitting an all-time high of 3%. The rise of quitting across the labor market is remarkable, but the concentration among a few sectors is eye-popping. Quits are up the most in sectors where most work is in-person or relatively low paying."

“There are likely some Delta-induced quits here, workers are fed up with working conditions and feel unsafe and quitting even though they might not immediately jump into a new job,” Daniel Zhao, an economist at Glassdoor, told the Washington Post.

Heather Long, Economics Correspondent for the Washington Post, pointed to the increasing quits rate as a sign of growing worker dissatisfaction:

“Labor now has the initiative, and the era of paying individuals less than a livable wage has ended,” said Joseph Brusuelas, chief economist at RSM US. “This strongly suggests that rising wages are going to be part and parcel of the economic landscape going forward.”

On a more optimistic note, Economic Policy Institute senior economist Elise Gould offered some hope for the future, dependent on how Covid behaves this fall, and if the October quits show any sign of slowing during the next report (due out in December).

‍

‍