The U.S. labor market held still in May 2026. The number of job openings was unchanged at 7.6 million and the job openings rate was unchanged at 4.6 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Hires were unchanged at 5.2 million, while total separations changed little at 5.1 million. Beneath that flat surface the year-ago comparisons are more specific: openings are running above where they stood a year earlier, while the flows through the labor market — hires and quits alike — are running below. JOLTS reads the labor market one month behind the payroll report, and these figures describe May.
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Job Openings Hold at 7.6 Million in May 2026 as Quits Fall 6.8%
Drafted by claude-opus-5 · Reviewed by a human before publication · Data as of
Job Openings
Monthly, level in thousands, seasonally adjusted
Job Openings Held at 7.6 Million
Openings ended May 9,000 above April's revised level, a difference of 0.1 percent that BLS does not treat as statistically meaningful. The openings rate was unchanged at 4.6 percent.
The year-ago comparison is where the distance sits. Openings stood 284,000 higher than in May 2025, a gain of 3.9 percent against 7.3 million a year earlier.
By industry, the number of job openings increased in wholesale trade (+71,000).
The Turnover Picture
Hires were unchanged at 5.2 million and the hires rate was unchanged at 3.3 percent. Hires increased in federal government (+11,000).
Total separations changed little at 5.1 million, with the rate unchanged at 3.2 percent. BLS reported that total separations changed little in all industries.
A structural note governs how these three series relate. Openings are a stock counted on the last business day of the month; hires and separations are flows accumulated across the entire month. They are not the same kind of quantity, and openings do not rise or fall by the difference between them.
Measured against May 2025, both flows are lower:
- Hires: down 158,000, a decline of 3 percent.
- Total separations: down 187,000, a decline of 3.5 percent.
- Quits: down 222,000, a decline of 6.8 percent.
That combination — more advertised positions than a year ago, fewer people actually hired — describes employers who are posting openings and filling them more slowly than they did in 2025.
By establishment size, firms with 1 to 9 employees and those with 5,000 or more employees showed little or no change in their job openings, hires, and separations rates.
Quits and Worker Confidence
Quits changed little at 3.1 million and the quits rate was unchanged at 1.9 percent. Quits increased in federal government (+4,000).
Quits are generally voluntary separations initiated by the employee, which makes the quits rate a direct read on whether workers believe they can find something better. At 1.9 percent, the rate sat 0.2 percentage points below its May 2025 reading, and the quits level fell 6.8 percent across the same twelve months. Workers are leaving jobs at a slower pace than they did a year ago — a direct sign that confidence in outside options has thinned.
Layoffs and the Composition of Separations
The number of layoffs and discharges was unchanged at 1.7 million, while the layoffs and discharges rate changed little at 1.1 percent. Layoffs and discharges decreased in arts, entertainment, and recreation (-42,000).
Layoffs are involuntary separations initiated by the employer, and the split between quits and layoffs is what separates a churning labor market from a weakening one. Against May 2025, layoffs and discharges were 37,000 higher, a rise of 2.2 percent. The two components diverged over the year: quits lower, layoffs higher. That is a composition tilting away from voluntary departures and toward involuntary ones.
The number of other separations, which covers retirements, deaths, disability, and transfers to other locations of the same firm, was unchanged at 328,000.
April Revisions
Revisions to April were routine in kind but not trivial in size:
- Job openings: revised down 33,000, to 7.6 million.
- Hires: revised up 99,000, to 5.2 million.
- Total separations: revised up 60,000, to 5.0 million.
- Quits: revised up 66,000, to 3.0 million.
- Layoffs and discharges: revised down 25,000, to 1.7 million.
BLS attributes monthly revisions to additional reports received from businesses and government agencies since the last published estimates, and to the recalculation of seasonal factors. The 99,000 upward revision to April hires is the one that reframes the month: April hiring was stronger than first reported, and May's unchanged 5.2 million therefore sits against a higher base than the original April print implied.
What It Means for Labor Demand
May held its levels steady while its composition tilted. Every headline series — openings, hires, separations, quits, layoffs — was unchanged or changed little from April. Over twelve months, though, the picture is not flat: openings up 3.9 percent, hires down 3 percent, quits down 6.8 percent, and layoffs up 2.2 percent. Demand for labor, as measured by posted openings, has not deteriorated. What has weakened is the rate at which workers and jobs are matching, and the willingness of workers to leave a job voluntarily.
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover news release for June 2026 is scheduled for Tuesday, August 4, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. ET. The figure that will confirm or contradict this read is the hires level. If hires remain below their year-ago pace while openings hold near 7.6 million, the gap between positions advertised and positions filled widens further, and the low-churn reading stands. A rebound in hires toward the year-ago level would mean the matching slowdown was a feature of the spring rather than a durable state.
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