Job openings in the United States were relatively flat in February, evidence that the U.S. labor market remains resilient despite ongoing policy pressure from the Federal Reserve.
The latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey shows that the number of U.S. job openings was roughly 8.8 million on the last day of February 2024, down from a series high of 12.2 million in March 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday.
The rate of job openings in the U.S. was also unchanged in February, marking three consecutive months at the 5.3% level, according to the report.
“The February Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey report is consistent with a labor market that is still quite healthy,” Oxford Economics lead U.S. economist Nancy Vanden Houten wrote in a note to clients, per Yahoo Finance.
Over the month, job openings increased in finance and insurance (+126,000); state and local government, excluding teaching (+91,000); and arts, entertainment, and recreation (+51,000). The sectors with a decrease in job openings were information (-85,000) and federal government (-21,000).
There was also no significant change in the number of new hires and total separations during the month.
Although U.S. employers hired 5.8 million workers in February, 5.6 million workforce participants either quit, got laid off, or were discharged. Of the 5.6 million job separations, approximately 3.5 million were from people quitting, while 1.7 million were from layoffs and discharges.
Total separations increased in arts, entertainment, and recreation (+64,000) but decreased in transportation, warehousing, and utilities (-62,000).
Since February’s labor market activity lacked substantial month-over-month change, Jessica Lee, senior economist for BMO Capital Markets, suggested the data will have “no impact” on the Federal Reserve’s current outlook.
While Lee believes the Fed’s 2% inflation target is coming within reach, she is uncertain of the timeline.
“The question is how long is it gonna take [for the fed’s inflation target of 2% to come in sight]? If [Inflation] starts to reaccelerate again or accelerate again, I think that’s where we’re gonna have some other issues,” Lee told Yahoo Finance in an interview.
