The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday that available jobs rose in October while hiring fell during the month when job growth reached its lowest level in nearly four years.
Job openings totaled 7.74 million during the month, up 372,000 from September and more than Dow Jones estimates of 7.5 million, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its Job Opportunities and Labor Turnover survey. The opening rate as a share of the labor force rose to 4.6% from 4.4%.
This has brought the ratio of available jobs to unemployed workers to 1.1, about half of what it was during the peak of the massive supply-demand gap in 2022.
Employment also declined as the labor market was disrupted by violent storms in the southeast of the country as well as two major labor strikes involving port and port workers. Boeing. Hires totaled 5.31 million, down 269,000 during the month, bringing the hiring rate down to 3.3%. This also represents a decrease of 0.2 percentage points.
However, the number of layoffs fell to 1.63 million, down 169,000 from September. The number of those leaving work voluntarily rose to 3.33 million, an increase of 228,000 compared to September.
The data comes for a month in which the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported nonfarm payrolls growth of just 12,000, the worst month since December 2020.
The Federal Reserve is watching the JOLTS report closely for signs of distress or recession in the labor market. Markets expect the Federal Reserve to cut its benchmark borrowing rate by a quarter of a percentage point when it meets later this month, partly in an effort to head off any potential weakness in the labor market.
