In a great article by Stephen Lepore for the Daily Mail, he reports that Americans have stopped leaving their jobs at the high rates we saw during the pandemic. In fact, the number of people quitting their jobs is down close to pre-pandemic levels. Last October, the number of people quitting was at a 30-year high. Job quitters hit the lowest level in 2 years in April. In May, the number was back up slightly to around 4 million people (about 2.5% of the employment market).
Experts believe the slowdown in people quitting could mean new job creation by employers is finally starting to slow and the labor market beginning to soften – which is exactly what the Federal Reserve has been trying to do. The total number of job openings dropped a little from April to May, going from 10.3 million to 9.8 million, according to the US Labor Department.
Applications for unemployment benefits are up overall for the year and the average number of hours being worked is down. New jobs figures for June are due any day and many economists are predicting that the US will continue its 14-month streak of positive job creation.
So, what about recession fears?
‘Demand for new hires remains elevated and employers are still holding onto the workers they have,’ said Nick Bunker, research director at Indeed Hiring Lab. ‘The data continue to make a soft-landing scenario increasingly likely.’
Locally, the NC Works job search website shows 1,672 jobs within 25 miles of Sanford, down slightly from a month ago. Of that amount, 467 are jobs that allow remote work some or all of the time.
About half of the 1,672 available jobs pay around $40,000 a year or less. Sixty of those jobs pay over $100,000 and require a specialized degree.
At SAGA, we continue to support our local employers efforts to find and train the best people.
If you would like to read Mr. Lepore’s article, here’s a link:
Bob Joyce
Senior Director, Economic Development
bjoyce@growsanfordnc.com