January saw a minimal change in the number of job openings across the U.S., but such openings remained elevated, suggesting that the American job market remains healthy.
Statistics released by the Labor Department Wednesday say U.S. employers posted 8.86 million job vacancies in January. That’s down a bit from the 8.89 million posted in December.
Layoffs fell modestly, but so did the number of Americans quitting their jobs — a sign of confidence they can find higher pay or better working conditions elsewhere, the Associated Press reported.
Job openings have gone down since peaking at a record 12 million in March 2022 as the economy began to recover from COVID-19 lockdowns. But they remain at historically high levels: Before 2021, monthly openings had never topped 8 million, the AP reported.
Employers have added an average of 244,000 jobs a month over the past year, including 333,000 in December and 353,000 in January.
“For many, job security remains high,” Nick Bunker, economic research director for North America at the Indeed Hiring Lab, told the AP. ”But the temperature of the labor market is not rising: if anything, it’s dropping.”
