April 16, 2004 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Job openings in February 2004

On the last business day of February 2004, there were 2.9 million job openings in the United States.

Job openings, seasonally adjusted, in millions, September 2003-February 2004
[Chart data—TXT]

Also, the job openings rate (the number of job openings on the last business day of the month divided by employment plus job openings) was 2.2 percent.

From January to February, the job openings rate showed little or no change overall and for the major industries. The job openings rate has been relatively unchanged since October 2001, ranging from 2.0 percent to 2.4 percent.

These data come from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. The above data are seasonally adjusted. Data for February 2004 are preliminary and subject to revision. Find additional information in "Job Openings and Labor Turnover: February 2004" (PDF) (TXT), USDL 04-645.

Happy 10th Birthday, TED!

The very first issue of The Editor's Desk (TED) was posted on September 28, 1998. TED was the first online-only publication of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. For 10 years, BLS has been committed to posting a new TED article each business day, for a total of over 2,400 articles so far.

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