March 13, 2007 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Job openings and labor turnover in 2006

The job openings, hires, and total separations rates were essentially unchanged in December 2006 compared with the prior month.

[Chart data—TXT]

On the last business day of December 2006, the job openings rate was 3.2 percent. The job openings rate was little changed during the first half of 2006, but trended upward in the latter part of the year; the December rate was the highest since February 2001. 

The hires rate was 3.6 percent in December 2006. The hires rate has ranged between 3.4 and 3.7 percent since December 2005. 

The total separations, or turnover, rate was 3.3 percent in December. In the past 12 months the separations rate has been between 3.2 and 3.6 percent. From December 2005 to December 2006, the total separations rate fell in transportation, warehousing, and utilities and in arts, entertainment, and recreation; the rate did not rise significantly in any industry.

These data come from the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. To learn more, see "Job Openings and Labor Turnover, December 2006" (PDF) (TXT) news release USDL 07-0197. These data are seasonally adjusted. Data for the most recent month are preliminary.