U.S. Job Openings Hold at 7.1 Million in August as Hiring Remains Muted

U.S. job openings were little changed at 7.1 million in August, while hiring remained subdued and worker turnover showed little movement, according to data released Tuesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS, counted 7.079 million openings on the last business day of August, down from a revised 7.335 million in July. Hires changed little at 5.192 million, while total separations were unchanged at 5.070 million. Quits held at 3.1 million and layoffs and discharges were essentially unchanged at 1.6 million.

The figures describe a labor market that is still generating a large number of vacancies but is not showing broad acceleration in hiring or turnover. BLS said the monthly changes in openings and hires were not statistically significant, an important distinction from treating the raw decline in openings as evidence of a sharp deterioration. The agency’s August JOLTS release also found little change in openings and hires across every major industry it tracks.

Openings slipped numerically, but the rate changed little

The headline openings count fell by 256,000 from July’s revised level, but BLS classified the change as little changed. The job openings rate was 4.3% in August, compared with 4.4% in July. A year earlier, employers had reported 6.919 million openings and a 4.2% openings rate.

No major industry registered a statistically significant monthly change in the number of openings. The raw estimates nevertheless show where demand remained concentrated. Private education and health services had about 1.484 million openings, including 1.359 million in health care and social assistance. Professional and business services had 1.186 million openings, while trade, transportation and utilities had 1.287 million.

Retail trade accounted for 761,000 openings and leisure and hospitality had 829,000. Manufacturing recorded 522,000, including 380,000 in durable goods. Those figures are estimates rather than measures of newly created positions during the month. JOLTS defines a job opening as a position that exists, could start within 30 days and is being actively recruited for from outside the establishment.

The survey found one clearer change by employer size: the openings rate decreased at establishments with one to nine employees. For establishments with 5,000 or more workers, openings, hires and separation rates all showed little or no change.

Hiring, quits and layoffs all stayed restrained

Gross hiring rose to 5.192 million from a revised 5.146 million in July, but BLS said the change was small enough to be considered little changed. The hiring rate was 3.3%, up from 3.2% a month earlier. Hires also changed little from the 5.145 million recorded in August 2025.

The lack of a broad hiring shift was visible across industries. BLS said hires changed little in every major industry in August. Private-sector hiring was essentially flat at 4.846 million compared with 4.847 million in July. Government hiring increased in the raw estimate to 346,000 from 299,000, but the agency did not identify that change as statistically significant.

Turnover was similarly quiet. Total separations were 5.070 million, compared with a revised 5.128 million in July, and the separations rate was unchanged at 3.2%. Quits remained at 3.1 million with a 1.9% rate. Layoffs and discharges changed little at 1.6 million and a 1.0% rate.

Quits are closely watched because they are voluntary departures and can reflect workers’ willingness or ability to leave a job. In August, quits decreased by 34,000 in wholesale trade and by 21,000 in state and local government education. They increased by 28,000 in nondurable goods manufacturing and by 13,000 in private educational services. Total separations decreased by 30,000 in state and local government education.

Stable quits and layoffs together point to limited movement on both sides of the labor market. Employers were not broadly accelerating dismissals, but workers also were not leaving jobs at a faster pace. That pattern is consistent with a market in which many employers still report vacancies while actual movement into and out of jobs remains contained.

JOLTS adds context to August’s payroll gain

The JOLTS hiring measure should not be read as the same thing as the monthly payroll change. Hires count all additions to payrolls during the month, including people who replace departing workers, while the employment report measures the net change in payroll jobs. An economy can therefore record millions of hires and separations while adding a much smaller number of jobs overall.

BLS reported earlier this month that nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000 in August and that the unemployment rate remained at 4.1%. That payroll gain was stronger than the average monthly increase of 31,000 over the preceding 12 months, with food services and drinking places and local government education among the areas adding jobs.

The JOLTS report gives a different view of the same labor market. Openings remained above 7 million, but hiring did not show a broad pickup. Quits stayed flat, and layoffs were essentially unchanged. The result is a market with substantial posted demand but comparatively modest churn.

July’s JOLTS figures were revised higher across several measures. Openings were revised up by 64,000 to 7.335 million, hires by 92,000 to 5.146 million and total separations by 56,000 to 5.128 million. Quits were revised up by 33,000, while layoffs and discharges were revised up by 36,000.

The next major labor-market update arrives Friday, October 2, when BLS is scheduled to publish the September employment report. The agency’s next JOLTS release, covering September, is scheduled for November 3.