The level of job openings is down 62,000 to 8.790 million in November after an upward revision to 8.852 million in October. The November level is close to the consensus of 8.750 million in the Econoday survey of forecasters. While job openings are down for the fourth month in a row, they remain above those seen in the pre-pandemic period. If lower than the peaks in 2022, job openings remain plentiful. The job openings rate is 5.3 perent in November, the same as in October and the lowest since 5.1 in February 2021. Job openings in private industries are down 28,000 in November while government jobs are down 35,000.

The pace of hiring slowed significantly in November, down 363,000 to 5.465 million jobs. Hiring in the private sector shows a 350,000 drop to 5.096 million, although over half of this reflects a 163,000 decrease in professional and business services. Government hiring is down 13,000 to 369,000 in November. Businesses may have been more cautious about bringing on new employees while the economic outlook is uncertain. Even though financing costs appear to be moderating, the geopolitical outlook and anticipation of slow growth in 2024 or even a recession may have restricted hiring in November. The November hiring rate is down to 3.5 percent after 3.7 in October and is the lowest since 3.1 in April 2020.

Even if hiring is soft, businesses are not laying off workers. Total separations are down 292,000 to 5.340 million in November after 5.632 million in October. Private industry separations are down 319,000 in November, while government separations are up 27,000. Half of all private separations are in the decrease of 158,000 in professional and business services and likely reflect ongoing restructuring in the tech sector. The separations rate is down to 3.4 percent in November after 3.6 in October, and is the lowest since 3.4 in September 2016.

There is less churn in the labor market with fewer workers voluntarily quitting their jobs. The number of quits a subset of separations is down 157,000 to 3.471 million in November, the lowest since 3.435 in February 2021. Quits are down 77,000 in professional and business services. The quits rate is down a tenth to 2.2 in November, its lowest since 2.2 in September 2020. The number of layoffs and discharges is down 116,000 in November with private industry layoffs and discharges down 115,000 and government down 1,000. Layoffs and discharges for professional and business services are down 66,000. The rate of layoffs and discharges is unchanged at 1.0 percent in November.

October's 8.733 million for job openings was significantly below Econoday's consensus for 9.4 million and was a huge relief to Federal Reserve officials fretting about excess demand in labor markets. The consensus for November is 8.750 million, pretty much flat from October.

The Labor Department's JOLTS report tracks monthly change in job openings and offers rates on hiring and quits. The reporting period lags other employment data including the employment situation report. The word JOLTS stands for Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey.

Although lagging the release timing of the employment situation report by a month, JOLTS provides additional information on the labor market. The payroll survey in the employment situation report provides numbers on net job changes. JOLTS breaks down labor market data into pre-net changes such as job openings, hires, and separations.