Employees sort packages at a FedEx Express facility on Cyber Monday on Monday, November 28, 2022 in Garden City, New York.
Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Job openings decreased in October amid the Federal Reserve’s efforts to calm the red-hot job market, the Labor Department reported Wednesday.
Job Openings and Labor Turnover SurveyThe , a closely watched gauge of slack in the labor force, showed there were 10.3 million vacancies for the month. That’s a drop of 353,000 from September and 760,000 fewer than a year ago.
This left 1.7 job openings per available worker for the month, down from a 2 to 1 ratio a few months ago.
The Fed has initiated a series of rate hikes aimed at reducing rapidly rising inflation. One area of particular focus has been the ultra-tight job market, with a 3.7% unemployment rate and wage gains that are helping fuel pressure.
While the monthly numbers can be volatile, the JOLTS report provided at least some measures of the impact the Fed’s efforts to fight inflation may be having. Reported that same day that payroll processing firm ADP reported job gains of just 127,000 In November, the lowest total since January 2021.
The attrition level, a measure of worker’s confidence that they can easily move from one job to another, also declined, to 4.026 million, down 34,000 from a month earlier and a record low of 4.5 million in November 2021. Which was dubbed. “Great resignation.”
Total separations increased to 5.68 million, while layoffs and furloughs also increased by 58,000 to 1.39 million.
The Labor Department will release payroll growth numbers for November on Friday. Economists expect job growth of 200,000 for the month, according to Dow Jones estimates.
Correction: ADP reported job gains of 127,000 in November, the lowest total since January 2021. An earlier version misstated the time. According to Dow Jones estimates, economists expect job growth of 200,000 for November. An earlier version misstated the figure.
The Labor Department will release the November payroll report on Friday. According to Dow Jones estimates, economists expect job growth of 200,000 for that month. An earlier version of this story misstated the month.