America now has more job seekers than available jobs
US job openings fell to 7.15 million in November, down from 7.45 million in the previous month, marking the lowest level since September 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary report released Wednesday.
The figure came in below all economist forecasts in a Bloomberg survey and declined across most industries, with the biggest pullback seen in leisure and hospitality, healthcare and social assistance, and transportation and warehousing. Only a few industries, including construction and retail, added jobs.
Hiring slowed as well, while layoffs declined to a six-month low, extending the “hire less, fire less” mode that has defined the US labor market for much of the past year — and that shift is making life even tougher not just for aspiring job switchers, but also for those trying to land a job in the first place.
Job openings and unemployment are often two sides of the same coin. When one rises, the other typically falls — a relationship economists track to gauge labor market tightness, or how many jobs are available per unemployed person.
For much of the pandemic period, that balance was wildly skewed, with job seekers having more power as employers scrambled for workers to meet surging consumer demand and work through supply chain disruptions. At its peak in early 2022, there were roughly two job openings for every job seeker.
With the hiring frenzy giving way to a painful correction, however, that ratio slipped below 1.0 in July, the first time in more than four years. And as of November, there are about 0.9 vacancies for every unemployed person, per BLS data, meaning job seekers now outnumber available roles.
New December data out this morning revealed that employers added fewer-than-expected 50,000 jobs last month, although the unemployment rate did tick down to 4.4%.
Job openings and unemployment are often two sides of the same coin. When one rises, the other typically falls — a relationship economists track to gauge labor market tightness, or how many jobs are available per unemployed person.
For much of the pandemic period, that balance was wildly skewed, with job seekers having more power as employers scrambled for workers to meet surging consumer demand and work through supply chain disruptions. At its peak in early 2022, there were roughly two job openings for every job seeker.
With the hiring frenzy giving way to a painful correction, however, that ratio slipped below 1.0 in July, the first time in more than four years. And as of November, there are about 0.9 vacancies for every unemployed person, per BLS data, meaning job seekers now outnumber available roles.
New December data out this morning revealed that employers added fewer-than-expected 50,000 jobs last month, although the unemployment rate did tick down to 4.4%.