For release 10:00 a.m. (EST) Tuesday, February 8, 2011 USDL-11-0152

Technical information: (202) 691-5870 • JoltsInfo@bls.gov • www.bls.gov/jlt

Media contact: (202) 691-5902 • PressOffice@bls.gov 

JOB OPENINGS AND LABOR TURNOVER – DECEMBER 2010

There were 3.1 million job openings on the last business day of December, the U.S. Bureau of Labor 

Statistics reported today. The job openings rate was essentially unchanged over the month at 2.3 percent.

Both the hires rate and the separations rate were unchanged at 3.2 percent each in December. This

release includes estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the total 

nonfarm sector by industry and by geographic region.

Job Openings

The number of job openings in December was 3.1 million, which was little changed from 3.2 million in 

November. (See table 1.) Since the most recent series trough in July 2009, the level of job openings has 

risen by 0.7 million, or 31 percent. This trough immediately followed the end of the recession in June 

2009 (as designated by the National Bureau of Economic Research). Even with the gains since July 

2009, the number of job openings in December remained 1.3 million below the 4.4 million openings

when the recession began in December 2007.

The number of job openings in December 2010 (not seasonally adjusted) increased from 12 months 

earlier for total nonfarm and total private. The level was little changed over the year for government.

Over the year, the job openings level increased in seven industries, decreased in one industry, and was 

essentially unchanged in the remaining industries. The job openings level increased in the Midwest and 

West regions. (See table 5.)

1.6

1.8

2.0

2.2

2.4

2.6

2.8

3.0

3.2

3.4

3.6

3.8

4.0

Percent

2008 2009 2010

Chart 1. Job openings rate, seasonally adjusted,

January 2008 - December 2010

NOTE: The shaded area represents the recession that began in Dec. 2007 and ended in June 2009

as designated by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). 

2.6

2.8

3.0

3.2

3.4

3.6

3.8

4.0

4.2

Percent

2008 2009 2010

Chart 2. Hires and separations rates, seasonally adjusted,

January 2008 - December 2010

Hires

Separations

NOTE: The shaded area represents the recession that began in Dec. 2007 and ended in June 2009

as designated by the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER). 
- 2 - 

Hires

In December, the hires rate was unchanged for total nonfarm (3.2 percent), total private (3.6 percent), 

and government (1.4 percent). The hires rate decreased for retail trade. The hires rate was essentially 

unchanged for all regions. (See table 2.) There were 4.2 million hires during the month, 9 percent higher 

than the most recent series trough in June 2009. This trough coincided with the official end of the 

recession. Despite the gains since June 2009, the number of hires in December remained below the 5.0 

million hires when the recession began in December 2007. Since their respective troughs, the hires level 

has risen at a slower pace than the job openings level.

Over the 12 months ending in December, the hires rate (not seasonally adjusted) was essentially 

unchanged for total nonfarm, total private, and government. The hires rate was essentially unchanged in 

all industries and regions. (See table 6.) 

Table A. Job openings, hires, and total separations by industry, seasonally adjusted

Industry Dec. Nov. Dec. Dec. Nov. Dec. Dec. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010p

Total ......................................................2,531 3,202 3,063 3,997 4,214 4,184 4,195 4,154 4,162

Total private 1....................................... 2,130 2,888 2,635 3,715 3,907 3,883 3,884 3,834 3,842

Construction....................................... 67 91 28 335 347 377 382 363 473

Manufacturing.................................... 171 214 198 244 274 265 273 293 257

Trade, transportation, and utilities 2

......... 378 461 505 849 855 804 901 832 768

Retail trade..................................... 237 265 299 547 588 514 567 579 494

Professional and business services......... 404 702 602 652 777 788 649 721 759

Education and health services............... 545 558 538 496 524 495 486 487 473

Leisure and hospitality ........................ 227 306 314 657 656 677 688 646 650

Arts, entertainment, and recreation...... 20 30 46 94 103 103 109 102 99

Accommodation and food services...... 207 276 269 562 553 574 578 544 552

Government 3

..................................... 401 314 428 282 308 301 311 319 320

 State and local government.................. 294 223 337 254 276 270 283 292 302

Total ...................................................... 1.9 2.4 2.3 3.1 3.2 3.2 3.2 3.2 3.2

Total private 1

....................................... 2.0 2.6 2.4 3.5 3.6 3.6 3.6 3.5 3.5

Construction....................................... 1.2 1.6 0.5 5.9 6.2 6.7 6.7 6.5 8.4

Manufacturing.................................... 1.5 1.8 1.7 2.1 2.3 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.2

Trade, transportation, and utilities 2

......... 1.5 1.8 2.0 3.4 3.4 3.2 3.7 3.3 3.1

Retail trade.................................... 1.6 1.8 2.0 3.8 4.1 3.5 3.9 4.0 3.4

Professional and business services......... 2.4 4.0 3.4 4.0 4.6 4.7 3.9 4.3 4.5

Education and health services............... 2.7 2.7 2.6 2.6 2.7 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.4

Leisure and hospitality ........................ 1.7 2.3 2.3 5.1 5.0 5.1 5.3 4.9 4.9

Arts, entertainment, and recreation...... 1.1 1.5 2.3 5.0 5.4 5.4 5.8 5.4 5.2

Accommodation and food services...... 1.8 2.4 2.3 5.1 4.9 5.1 5.2 4.8 4.9

Government 3

..................................... 1.8 1.4 1.9 1.3 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.4

 State and local government.................. 1.5 1.1 1.7 1.3 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.5 1.6

 1 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, and other services, not show n separately.

 2 Includes w holesale trade and transportation, w arehousing, and utilities, not show n separately.

 3 Includes federal government, not show n separately.

 p = preliminary.

Rates (percent)

Job openings Hires Total separations

Levels (in thousands)
- 3 - 

Separations 

Total separations includes quits (voluntary separations), layoffs and discharges (involuntary 

separations), and other separations (including retirements). The total separations, or turnover, rate was 

unchanged over the month for total nonfarm, total private, and government. The total separations rate 

increased for construction and decreased for retail trade. Over the 12 months ending in December, the 

total separations rate (not seasonally adjusted) was essentially unchanged for total nonfarm, total private, 

and government; the rate increased for construction and state and local government and decreased for 

federal government. (See tables 3 and 7.) 

The quits rate can serve as a measure of workers’ willingness or ability to change jobs. In December, the 

quits rate remained unchanged for total nonfarm (1.5 percent), total private (1.7 percent), and 

government (0.5 percent) and there was little or no change in every industry and region. (See table 4.)

The number of quits in December (2.0 million) was higher than the series trough in September 2009 (1.7 

million), but it was still well below the series peak in November 2006 (3.2 million). 

 

Over the 12 months ending in December, the quits rate (not seasonally adjusted) was essentially 

unchanged for total nonfarm and government but increased for total private. The quits rate increased for 

manufacturing, professional and business services, and information, and remained essentially unchanged 

for the remaining industries and all regions. (See table 8.) 

The layoffs and discharges component of total separations is seasonally adjusted at the total nonfarm, 

total private, and government levels. The layoffs and discharges level was essentially unchanged in 

December for total nonfarm, total private, and government. The number of layoffs and discharges for 

total nonfarm peaked at 2.6 million in January 2009, then fell to 1.8 million in December 2010. (See 

table B below.) 

The layoffs and discharges level (not seasonally adjusted) was essentially unchanged over the 12 months 

ending in December for total nonfarm. The level decreased for total private. The layoffs and discharges 

level increased in construction over the year. The level declined over the year in several industries and in 

the Midwest region. (See table 9.) 

The other separations series is not seasonally adjusted. In December, there were 332,000 other 

separations for total nonfarm, 276,000 for total private, and 56,000 for government. Compared to 

December 2009, the number of other separations was little changed for total nonfarm, total private, and 

government. (See table 10.)

Table B. Layoffs and discharges, seasonally adjusted

Dec. Nov. Dec. Dec. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010p

Total...............................................................2,049 1,854 1,838 1.6 1.4 1.4

Total private...................................................1,914 1,713 1,676 1.8 1.6 1.5

Government................................................... 135 141 162 0.6 0.6 0.7

 p = preliminary.

Industry

Levels (in thousands) Rates (percent)
- 4 - 

Relative Contributions to Separations

The total separations level is influenced by the relative contribution of its three components—quits, 

layoffs and discharges, and other separations. The percentage of total separations at the total nonfarm 

level attributable to the individual components has varied over time, but for the majority of the months 

since the series began in December 2000, the proportion of quits has exceeded the proportion of layoffs 

and discharges. Other separations is historically a very small portion of total separations; it has rarely 

been above 10 percent of the total.

Since February 2010, the proportions of quits and of layoffs and discharges at the total nonfarm level

have been close. In December 2010, the proportion of quits for total nonfarm was 48 percent and the 

proportion of layoffs and discharges was 44 percent. For total private, the proportions were 49 percent 

quits and 44 percent layoffs and discharges. For government, the proportions were 33 percent quits and 

51 percent layoffs and discharges. (See table C below.)

Net Change in Employment

Over the 12 months ending in December, hires (not seasonally adjusted) totaled 51.0 million and 

separations (not seasonally adjusted) totaled 50.1 million, yielding a net employment gain of 0.9 million.

These figures include workers who may have been hired and separated more than once during the year.

Nearly half of the hires and nearly half of the separations during these 12 months occurred in three 

industries: retail trade; professional and business services; and accommodation and food services. The 

large share of total hires and separations accounted for by these three industries reflects the size of the 

industries as well as their relatively high hires and separations rates.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey results for January 2011 are scheduled to be 

released on Friday, March 11, 2011 at 10:00 a.m. (EST).

Revisions to the JOLTS Data 

With the release of January data on March 11, BLS will revise the job openings, hires, and separations 

data to incorporate the annual updates to the Current Employment Statistics employment estimates and 

the JOLTS seasonal adjustment factors. Unadjusted data from December 2005 forward and seasonally 

adjusted data from December 2005 forward are subject to revision. 

Table C. Quits and layoffs and discharges as a percentage of total separations, seasonally adjusted

(Levels in thousands)

Level

Portion 

of total Level

Portion 

of total Level

Portion 

of total Level

Portion 

of total Level

Portion 

of total Level

Portion 

of total

Total .................................... 1,753 42% 1,921 46% 1,991 48% 2,049 49% 1,854 45% 1,838 44%

Total private...........................1,639 42% 1,814 47% 1,884 49% 1,914 49% 1,713 45% 1,676 44%

Government........................... 114 37% 107 34% 106 33% 135 43% 141 44% 162 51%

 p = preliminary.

Industry

Quits Layoffs and discharges

Dec.

2009

Nov.

2010

Dec.

2010p

Dec.

2009

Nov.

2010

Dec.

2010p
Technical Note

 The data for the Job Openings and Labor Turnover 

Survey (JOLTS) are collected and compiled monthly 

from a sample of business establishments by the 

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

Collection

 In a monthly survey of business establishments, data 

are collected for total employment, job openings, hires, 

quits, layoffs and discharges, and other separations. 

Data collection methods include computer-assisted 

telephone interviewing, touchtone data entry, web, fax, 

e-mail, and mail.

Coverage

 The JOLTS program covers all private nonfarm establishments such as factories, offices, and stores, as well 

as federal, state, and local government entities in the 50 

states and the District of Columbia.

Concepts

 Industry classification. The industry classifications 

in this release are in accordance with the 2007 version 

of the North American Industry Classification System 

(NAICS). In order to ensure the highest possible quality of data, State Workforce Agencies verify with 

employers and update, if necessary, the industry code, 

location, and ownership classification of all establishments on a 3-year cycle. Changes in establishment 

characteristics resulting from the verification process 

are always introduced into the JOLTS sampling frame

with the data reported for the first month of the year.

 Employment. Employment includes persons on the 

payroll who worked or received pay for the pay period 

that includes the 12th day of the reference month. Fulltime, part-time, permanent, short-term, seasonal, salaried, and hourly employees are included, as are employees on paid vacations or other paid leave. 

Proprietors or partners of unincorporated businesses, 

unpaid family workers, or persons on leave without pay 

or on strike for the entire pay period, are not counted as 

employed. Employees of temporary help agencies, employee leasing companies, outside contractors, and 

consultants are counted by their employer of record, 

not by the establishment where they are working.

 Job openings. Establishments submit job openings 

information for the last business day of the reference 

month. A job opening requires that: 1) a specific position exists and there is work available for that position, 

2) work could start within 30 days regardless of 

whether a suitable candidate is found, and 3) the 

employer is actively recruiting from outside the 

establishment to fill the position. Included are fulltime, part-time, permanent, short-term, and seasonal 

openings. Active recruiting means that the establishment is taking steps to fill a position by advertising in 

newspapers or on the Internet, posting help-wanted 

signs, accepting applications, or using other similar 

methods.

 Jobs to be filled only by internal transfers, promotions, demotions, or recall from layoffs are excluded. 

Also excluded are jobs with start dates more than 30 

days in the future, jobs for which employees have been 

hired but have not yet reported for work, and jobs to be 

filled by employees of temporary help agencies, employee leasing companies, outside contractors, or 

consultants. The job openings rate is computed by 

dividing the number of job openings by the sum of 

employment and job openings and multiplying that 

quotient by 100.

 Hires. Hires are the total number of additions to the 

payroll occurring at any time during the reference 

month, including both new and rehired employees, fulltime and part-time, permanent, short-term and seasonal 

employees, employees recalled to the location after a 

layoff lasting more than 7 days, on-call or intermittent 

employees who returned to work after having been 

formally separated, and transfers from other locations. 

The hires count does not include transfers or promotions within the reporting site, employees returning 

from strike, employees of temporary help agencies or 

employee leasing companies, outside contractors, or 

consultants. The hires rate is computed by dividing the 

number of hires by employment and multiplying that 

quotient by 100.

 Separations. Separations are the total number of 

terminations of employment occurring at any time 

during the reference month, and are reported by type of 

separation—quits, layoffs and discharges, and other 

separations. Quits are voluntary separations by employees (except for retirements, which are reported as 

other separations). Layoffs and discharges are involuntary separations initiated by the employer and 

include layoffs with no intent to rehire; formal layoffs 

lasting or expected to last more than 7 days; discharges 

resulting from mergers, downsizing, or closings; firings 

or other discharges for cause; terminations of permanent or short-term employees; and terminations of 

seasonal employees. Other separations include retirements, transfers to other locations, deaths, and separations due to disability. Separations do not include 

transfers within the same location or employees on 

strike.
 The separations rate is computed by dividing the 

number of separations by employment and multiplying 

that quotient by 100. The quits, layoffs and discharges, 

and other separations rates are computed similarly, 

dividing the number by employment and multiplying 

by 100.

 Annual estimates. Annual estimates of rates and 

levels of hires, quits, layoffs and discharges, other separations, and total separations are released with the 

January news release each year.

 The JOLTS annual level estimates for hires, quits, 

layoffs and discharges, other separations, and total 

separations are the sum of the 12 published monthly 

levels. The annual rate estimates are computed by 

dividing the annual level by the Current Employment 

Statistics (CES) annual average employment level, and 

multiplying that quotient by 100. This figure will be 

approximately equal to the sum of the 12 monthly 

rates. Note that both the JOLTS and CES annual levels 

are rounded to the nearest thousand before the annual 

estimates are calculated. Consistent with BLS practices, annual estimates are published only for not seasonally adjusted data.

 Annual estimates are not calculated for job openings 

because job openings are a stock, or point-in-time, 

measurement for the last business day of each month. 

Only jobs still open on the last day of the month are 

counted. For the same reason job openings cannot be 

cumulated throughout each month, annual figures for 

job openings cannot be created by summing the 

monthly estimates. Hires and separations are flow 

measures and are cumulated over the month with a 

total reported for the month. Therefore, the annual figures can be created by summing the monthly estimates.

Special collection procedures

 An implied measure of employment change can be 

derived from the JOLTS data by subtracting separations from hires for a given month. Aggregating 

these monthly changes historically produced employment levels that overstated employment change as 

measured by CES at the total nonfarm level. Research 

into this problem showed that a significant amount of 

the divergence between the CES employment levels 

and the derived JOLTS employment levels was traceable to the Employment Services industry and to the 

State Government Education industry. In the former 

industry, businesses have a difficult time reporting 

hires and separations of temporary help workers. In 

the latter industry, employers have difficulty reporting 

hires and separations of student workers. BLS now devotes additional resources to the collection, editing, and 

review of data for these industries. BLS analysts more 

closely examine reported data that do not provide a 

consistent picture over time, and re-contact the 

respondents as necessary. Analysts work with the 

respondents to adjust their reporting practices as 

possible. Units that cannot be reconciled but are clearly incorrect on a consistent basis are not used; they are 

replaced by imputed values using standard techniques.

Sample and estimation methodology

 The JOLTS survey design is a random sample of 

16,000 nonfarm business establishments, including 

factories, offices, and stores, as well as federal, state, 

and local governments in the 50 states and the District 

of Columbia. The establishments are drawn from a 

universe of over 9.1 million establishments compiled 

as part of the operations of the Quarterly Census of 

Employment and Wages (QCEW) program. This 

program includes all employers subject to state 

Unemployment Insurance (UI) laws and federal 

agencies subject to Unemployment Compensation for 

Federal Employees (UCFE).

 The sampling frame is stratified by ownership, region, 

industry sector, and size class. The JOLTS sample is 

constructed from individual panels of sample units 

drawn on an annual basis. The full annual sample consists of one certainty panel composed of only large 

units selected with virtual certainty based on their size 

and 24 non-certainty panels. Each month a new noncertainty panel is rolled into collection, and the oldest 

non-certainty panel is rolled out. This means that at 

any given time the JOLTS sample is constructed from 

panels from three different annual sampling frames. 

The entire sample of old plus new panels is poststratified and re-weighted annually to represent the 

most recent sampling frame. Additionally, the out-ofbusiness establishments are removed from the old 

panels. The annual sample is supplemented with a 

quarterly sample of birth establishments (i.e., new 

establishments) to better reflect the impact of younger 

establishments in the JOLTS sample.

 JOLTS total employment estimates are benchmarked 

monthly to the employment estimates of the Current 

Employment Statistics (CES) survey. A ratio of CES 

to JOLTS employment is used to adjust the levels for 

all other JOLTS data elements. 

JOLTS business birth/death model

 As with any sample survey, the JOLTS sample can 

only be as current as its sampling frame. The time lag 

from the birth of an establishment until its appearance 

on the sampling frame is approximately one year. In 

addition, many of these new units may fail within the 

first year. Since these universe units cannot be reflected on the sampling frame immediately, the JOLTS 

sample cannot capture job openings, hires, and sepa-
rations from these units during their early existence. 

BLS has developed a model to estimate birth/death 

activity for current months by examining the birth/

death activity from previous years on the QCEW and 

projecting forward to the present using an econometric 

technique known as X-12 ARIMA modeling. The 

birth/death model also uses historical JOLTS data to 

estimate the amount of “churn” (hires and separations) 

that exists in establishments of various sizes. The 

model then combines the estimated churn with the 

projected employment change to estimate the number 

of hires and separations taking place in these units that 

cannot be measured through sampling. 

 The model-based estimate of total separations is 

distributed to the three components—quits; layoffs and 

discharges; and other separations—in proportion to 

their contribution to the sample-based estimate of total 

separations. Additionally, job openings for the modeled units are estimated by computing the ratio of 

openings to hires in the collected data and applying that 

ratio to the modeled hires. The estimates of job openings, hires, and separations produced by the birth/death 

model are then added to the sample-based estimates 

produced from the survey to arrive at the estimates for 

openings, hires, and separations.

Seasonal adjustment

 BLS seasonally adjusts several JOLTS series using 

the X-12 ARIMA seasonal adjustment program. 

Seasonal adjustment is the process of estimating and 

removing periodic fluctuations caused by events such 

as weather, holidays, and the beginning and ending of 

the school year. Seasonal adjustment makes it easier to 

observe fundamental changes in the level of the series, 

particularly those associated with general economic 

expansions and contractions. A concurrent seasonal 

adjustment methodology is used in which new seasonal 

adjustment factors are calculated each month, using all 

relevant data, up to and including the data for the 

current month.

 JOLTS uses moving averages as seasonal filters in 

seasonal adjustment. JOLTS seasonal adjustment includes both additive and multiplicative seasonal adjustment models and REGARIMA (regression with autocorrelated errors) modeling to improve the seasonal 

adjustment factors at the beginning and end of the 

series and to detect and adjust for outliers in the series.

Alignment procedure

 JOLTS hires minus separations should be comparable 

to the CES net employment change. However, definitional differences as well as sampling and nonsampling errors between the two surveys historically 

caused JOLTS to diverge from CES over time. To limit 

the divergence, and improve the quality of the JOLTS 

hires and separations series, BLS implemented the 

Monthly Alignment Method. The Monthly Alignment Method applies the CES employment trends to 

the seasonally adjusted JOLTS implied employment 

trend (hires minus separations) forcing them to be 

approximately the same, while preserving the seasonality of the JOLTS data. First, the two series are 

seasonally adjusted and the difference between the 

JOLTS implied employment trend and the CES net 

employment change is calculated. Next, the JOLTS 

implied employment trend is adjusted to equal the CES 

net employment change through a proportional adjustment. This proportional adjustment procedure adjusts 

the two components (hires, separations) proportionally 

to their contribution to the total churn (hires plus separations). For example, if hires are 40 percent of the 

churn for a given month, they will receive 40 percent 

of the needed adjustment and separations will receive 

60 percent of the needed adjustment. The adjusted hires 

and separations are converted back to not seasonally 

adjusted data by reversing the application of the original seasonal factors. After the Monthly Alignment 

Method has been used to adjust the level estimates, rate 

estimates are computed from the adjusted levels. The 

monthly alignment procedure assures a close match of 

the JOLTS implied employment trend with the CES 

trend. The CES series is considered a highly accurate 

measure of net employment change owing to its very 

large sample size and annual benchmarking to universe 

counts of employment from the QCEW program.

Using JOLTS data

 The JOLTS data series on job openings, hires, and 

separations are relatively new. The full sample is divided into panels, with one panel enrolled each month. 

A full complement of panels for the original data series 

based on the 1987 Standard Industrial Classification 

(SIC) system was not completely enrolled in the survey 

until January 2002. The supplemental panels of establishments needed to create NAICS estimates were not 

completely enrolled until May 2003. The data collected up until those points are from less than a full 

sample. Therefore, estimates from earlier months 

should be used with caution, as fewer sampled units 

were reporting data at that time.

 In March 2002, BLS procedures for collecting hires 

and separations data were revised to address possible 

underreporting. As a result, JOLTS hires and separations estimates for months prior to March 2002 may 

not be comparable to estimates for March 2002 and 

later.

 The federal government reorganization that involved 

transferring approximately 180,000 employees to the 

new Department of Homeland Security is not reflected 

in the JOLTS hires and separations estimates for the 
federal government. The Office of Personnel Management's record shows these transfers were completed in 

March 2003. The inclusion of transfers in the JOLTS 

definitions of hires and separations is intended to cover 

ongoing movements of workers between establishments. The Department of Homeland Security reorganization was a massive one-time event, and the 

inclusion of these intergovernmental transfers would 

distort the federal government time series.

Reliability of the estimates

 JOLTS estimates are subject to both sampling and 

nonsampling error. When a sample rather than the entire population is surveyed, there is a chance that the 

sample estimates may differ from the "true" population 

values they represent. The exact difference, or sampling error, varies depending on the particular sample 

selected, and this variability is measured by the standard error of the estimate. BLS analysis is generally 

conducted at the 90-percent level of confidence. That 

means that there is a 90-percent chance, or level of 

confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will 

differ by no more than 1.6 standard errors from the 

"true" population value because of sampling error. 

Estimates of sampling errors are available upon request.

 The JOLTS estimates also are affected by nonsampling error. Nonsampling error can occur for many 

reasons, including the failure to include a segment of 

the population, the inability to obtain data from all 

units in the sample, the inability or unwillingness of 

respondents to provide data on a timely basis, mistakes 

made by respondents, errors made in the collection or 

processing of the data, and errors from the employment 

benchmark data used in estimation.

Other information

 Information in this release will be made available to 

sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice 

phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 

877-8339.
Table 1. Job openings levels 1

 and rates 2 by industry and region, seasonally adjusted

Dec. July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Dec. July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010p

Total......................................................2,531 3,141 3,092 3,011 3,328 3,202 3,063 1.9 2.4 2.3 2.3 2.5 2.4 2.3

INDUSTRY

Total private 4.......................................2,130 2,821 2,752 2,658 2,998 2,888 2,635 2.0 2.5 2.5 2.4 2.7 2.6 2.4

Construction.................................... 67 101 65 71 79 91 28 1.2 1.8 1.1 1.2 1.4 1.6 .5

Manufacturing................................. 171 238 190 203 209 214 198 1.5 2.0 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.8 1.7

Trade, transportation, and utilities 5...... 378 485 449 472 481 461 505 1.5 1.9 1.8 1.9 1.9 1.8 2.0

Retail trade................................. 237 295 263 265 279 265 299 1.6 2.0 1.8 1.8 1.9 1.8 2.0

Professional and business services...... 404 564 590 559 680 702 602 2.4 3.3 3.4 3.2 3.9 4.0 3.4

Education and health services............ 545 515 487 529 638 558 538 2.7 2.6 2.4 2.6 3.1 2.7 2.6

Leisure and hospitality ........................ 227 365 381 307 321 306 314 1.7 2.7 2.8 2.3 2.4 2.3 2.3

Arts, entertainment, and recreation... 20 42 41 41 37 30 46 1.1 2.1 2.1 2.1 1.9 1.5 2.3

Accommodation and food services... 207 323 340 266 284 276 269 1.8 2.8 2.9 2.3 2.5 2.4 2.3

Government 6....................................... 401 320 341 354 330 314 428 1.8 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.5 1.4 1.9

State and local government............... 294 246 257 250 277 223 337 1.5 1.2 1.3 1.3 1.4 1.1 1.7

REGION 7

Northeast....................................... 547 639 666 565 678 594 592 2.2 2.5 2.6 2.2 2.7 2.3 2.3

South............................................. 943 1,100 1,159 1,101 1,283 1,050 1,054 2.0 2.3 2.4 2.3 2.6 2.2 2.2

Midwest.......................................... 495 617 647 552 633 725 631 1.7 2.0 2.1 1.8 2.1 2.4 2.1

West............................................. 603 696 730 665 821 764 777 2.1 2.4 2.5 2.3 2.8 2.6 2.6

1

 Job openings are the number of job openings on the last business day of the 7

 The States (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the 

month. regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New 2 The job openings rate is the number of job openings on the last business day Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and 

of the month as a percent of total employment plus job openings. Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, 

 3 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent seasonal Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North 

adjustment of the various series and because not all series are shown. Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and 

 4 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, 

other services, not shown separately. Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and 

 5 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, 

shown separately. Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and 

 6 Includes federal government, not shown separately. Wyoming.

 p = preliminary.

Table 2. Hires levels 1 and rates 2 by industry and region, seasonally adjusted

Dec. July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Dec. July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010p

Total......................................................3,997 4,275 4,156 4,208 4,249 4,214 4,184 3.1 3.3 3.2 3.2 3.3 3.2 3.2

INDUSTRY

Total private 4.......................................3,715 3,985 3,891 3,953 3,963 3,907 3,883 3.5 3.7 3.6 3.7 3.7 3.6 3.6

Construction.................................... 335 361 357 336 370 347 377 5.9 6.4 6.4 6.0 6.6 6.2 6.7

Manufacturing................................. 244 297 274 260 271 274 265 2.1 2.5 2.3 2.2 2.3 2.3 2.3

Trade, transportation, and utilities 5...... 849 864 798 863 838 855 804 3.4 3.5 3.2 3.5 3.4 3.4 3.2

Retail trade................................. 547 608 571 606 591 588 514 3.8 4.2 4.0 4.2 4.1 4.1 3.5

Professional and business services...... 652 810 831 818 804 777 788 4.0 4.8 5.0 4.9 4.8 4.6 4.7

Education and health services............ 496 515 492 514 483 524 495 2.6 2.6 2.5 2.6 2.5 2.7 2.5

Leisure and hospitality ........................ 657 712 688 714 686 656 677 5.1 5.4 5.2 5.4 5.2 5.0 5.1

Arts, entertainment, and recreation... 94 119 109 118 105 103 103 5.0 6.2 5.7 6.2 5.6 5.4 5.4

Accommodation and food services... 562 593 579 595 581 553 574 5.1 5.3 5.2 5.3 5.2 4.9 5.1

Government 6....................................... 282 289 264 254 287 308 301 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.1 1.3 1.4 1.4

State and local government............... 254 247 228 222 256 276 270 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.1 1.3 1.4 1.4

REGION 7

Northeast....................................... 746 731 702 787 756 703 678 3.0 3.0 2.8 3.2 3.1 2.8 2.7

South............................................. 1,463 1,531 1,541 1,562 1,598 1,643 1,539 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.3

Midwest.......................................... 900 1,011 946 924 996 929 921 3.1 3.4 3.2 3.1 3.4 3.1 3.1

West............................................. 879 923 870 950 944 902 834 3.1 3.2 3.0 3.3 3.3 3.1 2.9

 1 Hires are the number of hires during the entire month. 5

 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, 2 The hires rate is the number of hires during the entire month as a percent of not shown separately.

total employment. 6

 Includes federal government, not shown separately. 3

 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent seasonal 7 See footnote 7, table 1. 

adjustment of the various series and because not all series are shown. p

 = preliminary. 4

 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, and 

other services, not shown separately.

Industry and region

Industry and region

Levels Rates 3

 (in thousands)

Levels 3

 (in thousands) Rates
Table 3. Total separations levels 1

 and rates 2 by industry and region, seasonally adjusted

Dec. July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Dec. July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010p

Total................................................... 4,195 4,390 4,210 4,139 4,084 4,154 4,162 3.2 3.4 3.2 3.2 3.1 3.2 3.2

INDUSTRY

Total private 4.................................... 3,884 3,940 3,796 3,761 3,798 3,834 3,842 3.6 3.7 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5

Construction.................................... 382 361 321 334 348 363 473 6.7 6.5 5.7 5.9 6.2 6.5 8.4

Manufacturing................................. 273 271 279 261 279 293 257 2.4 2.3 2.4 2.2 2.4 2.5 2.2

Trade, transportation, and utilities 5...... 901 855 814 813 802 832 768 3.7 3.5 3.3 3.3 3.2 3.3 3.1

Retail trade................................. 567 613 583 569 559 579 494 3.9 4.2 4.0 3.9 3.9 4.0 3.4

Professional and business services...... 649 830 808 774 795 721 759 3.9 5.0 4.8 4.6 4.7 4.3 4.5

Education and health services............ 486 491 454 487 424 487 473 2.5 2.5 2.3 2.5 2.2 2.5 2.4

Leisure and hospitality ..................... 688 701 663 675 694 646 650 5.3 5.3 5.0 5.1 5.3 4.9 4.9

Arts, entertainment, and recreation... 109 121 106 105 112 102 99 5.8 6.3 5.5 5.5 5.9 5.4 5.2

Accommodation and food services... 578 580 557 570 582 544 552 5.2 5.2 5.0 5.1 5.2 4.8 4.9

Government 6.................................... 311 450 414 378 286 319 320 1.4 2.0 1.8 1.7 1.3 1.4 1.4

State and local government............... 283 268 267 269 242 292 302 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.2 1.5 1.6

REGION 7

Northeast....................................... 817 775 731 707 748 749 683 3.3 3.1 3.0 2.9 3.0 3.0 2.8

South............................................. 1,499 1,533 1,602 1,553 1,419 1,474 1,592 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.3 3.0 3.1 3.4

Midwest..........................................1,016 1,018 930 984 914 923 936 3.5 3.4 3.1 3.3 3.1 3.1 3.2

West............................................. 1,061 929 889 910 868 882 866 3.7 3.2 3.1 3.2 3.0 3.0 3.0

 1 Total separations are the number of total separations during the entire 5

 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities 

month. not shown separately. 2 The total separations rate is the number of total separations during the 6

 Includes federal government, not shown separately.

entire month as a percent of total employment. 7

 See footnote 7, table 1. 3

 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent p = preliminary.

seasonal adjustment of the various series and because not all series are shown. 4

 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, 

and other services, not shown separately.

Table 4. Quits levels 1 and rates 2 by industry and region, seasonally adjusted

Dec. July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Dec. July Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010 2010p

Total................................................... 1,753 1,974 1,998 1,983 1,997 1,921 1,991 1.4 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5

INDUSTRY

Total private 4.................................... 1,639 1,855 1,881 1,860 1,889 1,814 1,884 1.5 1.7 1.7 1.7 1.7 1.7 1.7

Construction.................................... 76 72 81 85 81 67 68 1.3 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.4 1.2 1.2

Manufacturing................................. 75 97 107 95 108 115 121 .7 .8 .9 .8 .9 1.0 1.0

Trade, transportation, and utilities 5...... 392 451 425 452 417 435 404 1.6 1.8 1.7 1.8 1.7 1.8 1.6

Retail trade................................. 291 347 322 351 318 324 295 2.0 2.4 2.2 2.4 2.2 2.2 2.0

Professional and business services...... 248 357 385 350 411 336 371 1.5 2.1 2.3 2.1 2.4 2.0 2.2

Education and health services............ 271 258 249 245 243 261 241 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.2

Leisure and hospitality ..................... 375 401 407 394 412 362 421 2.9 3.1 3.1 3.0 3.1 2.7 3.2

Arts, entertainment, and recreation... 32 31 36 39 51 40 43 1.7 1.6 1.9 2.1 2.7 2.1 2.3

Accommodation and food services... 344 370 370 355 361 323 377 3.1 3.3 3.3 3.2 3.2 2.9 3.3

Government 6.................................... 114 119 117 124 108 107 106 .5 .5 .5 .6 .5 .5 .5

State and local government............... 106 100 101 112 96 99 100 .5 .5 .5 .6 .5 .5 .5

REGION 7

Northeast....................................... 280 318 333 271 288 279 312 1.1 1.3 1.3 1.1 1.2 1.1 1.3

South............................................. 722 749 791 804 777 755 824 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.7 1.6 1.6 1.7

Midwest.......................................... 391 475 452 410 481 436 481 1.3 1.6 1.5 1.4 1.6 1.5 1.6

West............................................. 382 404 425 411 420 387 400 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.4 1.5 1.3 1.4

 1 Quits are the number of quits during the entire month. 5

 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities 2 The quits rate is the number of quits during the entire month as a not shown separately.

percent of total employment. 6

 Includes federal government, not shown separately. 3

 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent 7 See footnote 7, table 1. 

seasonal adjustment of the various series and because not all series are shown. p

 = preliminary. 4

 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, 

and other services, not shown separately.

Industry and region

Industry and region

Levels 3

 (in thousands) Rates

Levels 3

 (in thousands) Rates
Table 5. Job openings levels 1

 and rates 2 by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

Dec. Nov. Dec. Dec. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010p

Total............................................................ 2,279 2,876 2,703 1.7 2.1 2.0

INDUSTRY

Total private................................................ 1,927 2,576 2,310 1.8 2.3 2.1

Mining and logging.................................... 6 26 24 .9 3.3 3.1

Construction............................................. 55 71 22 1.0 1.2 .4

Manufacturing.......................................... 159 190 170 1.4 1.6 1.4

Durable goods....................................... 80 137 124 1.1 1.9 1.7

Nondurable goods.................................... 79 54 47 1.7 1.2 1.0

Trade, transportation, and utilities.................. 295 390 387 1.2 1.5 1.5

Wholesale trade....................................... 75 89 81 1.3 1.6 1.4

Retail trade............................................. 177 240 218 1.2 1.6 1.4

Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...... 43 62 87 .9 1.3 1.8

Information................................................ 56 92 87 2.0 3.2 3.1

Financial activities...................................... 134 254 182 1.7 3.2 2.3

Finance and insurance.............................. 97 219 163 1.7 3.7 2.8

Real estate and rental and leasing............... 37 35 19 1.8 1.8 1.0

Professional and business services............... 381 649 560 2.2 3.7 3.2

Education and health services..................... 532 530 527 2.7 2.6 2.6

Educational services................................. 42 57 51 1.3 1.7 1.5

Health care and social assistance............... 490 473 475 2.9 2.8 2.8

Leisure and hospitality................................. 186 248 251 1.4 1.9 1.9

Arts, entertainment, and recreation............ 14 26 32 .8 1.5 1.8

Accommodation and food services............ 172 223 219 1.5 2.0 1.9

Other services.......................................... 123 125 101 2.3 2.3 1.8

Government................................................ 352 300 392 1.5 1.3 1.7

Federal................................................... 86 86 77 3.0 3.0 2.6

State and local........................................... 266 214 316 1.3 1.1 1.6

REGION 3

Northeast................................................ 488 557 523 1.9 2.2 2.0

South...................................................... 873 942 973 1.8 1.9 2.0

Midwest................................................... 419 634 549 1.4 2.1 1.8

West...................................................... 499 743 659 1.7 2.5 2.2

 1 Job openings are the number of job openings on the last business day of the month.

 2 The job openings rate is the number of job openings on the last business day of the month as a percent of total employment 

plus job openings. 3 See footnote 7, table 1.

 p = preliminary.

Levels (in thousands) Rates

Industry and region
Table 6. Hires levels 1

 and rates 2 by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

Dec. Nov. Dec. Dec. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010p

Total............................................................ 2,912 3,728 3,061 2.2 2.8 2.3

INDUSTRY

Total private................................................ 2,746 3,498 2,878 2.6 3.2 2.6

Mining and logging.................................... 16 22 16 2.4 2.9 2.1

Construction............................................. 206 258 234 3.7 4.5 4.3

Manufacturing.......................................... 152 220 161 1.3 1.9 1.4

Durable goods....................................... 85 125 97 1.2 1.7 1.3

Nondurable goods.................................... 67 94 64 1.5 2.1 1.4

Trade, transportation, and utilities.................. 672 997 652 2.7 3.9 2.6

Wholesale trade....................................... 82 103 105 1.5 1.8 1.9

Retail trade............................................. 435 741 395 2.9 5.0 2.6

Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...... 156 153 152 3.3 3.2 3.1

Information................................................ 57 70 57 2.1 2.6 2.1

Financial activities...................................... 148 138 165 1.9 1.8 2.2

Finance and insurance.............................. 83 96 102 1.5 1.7 1.8

Real estate and rental and leasing............... 64 41 63 3.3 2.1 3.3

Professional and business services............... 524 703 624 3.2 4.1 3.7

Education and health services..................... 356 435 351 1.8 2.2 1.8

Educational services................................. 31 60 34 1.0 1.8 1.0

Health care and social assistance............... 326 375 317 2.0 2.3 1.9

Leisure and hospitality................................. 477 528 487 3.8 4.1 3.8

Arts, entertainment, and recreation............ 71 76 74 4.1 4.4 4.2

Accommodation and food services............ 406 452 413 3.7 4.0 3.7

Other services.......................................... 138 126 130 2.6 2.4 2.4

Government................................................ 166 230 183 .7 1.0 .8

Federal................................................... 23 27 23 .8 .9 .8

State and local........................................... 144 203 160 .7 1.0 .8

REGION 3

Northeast................................................ 544 626 543 2.2 2.5 2.2

South...................................................... 1,066 1,511 1,163 2.3 3.2 2.4

Midwest................................................... 641 767 690 2.2 2.6 2.3

West...................................................... 661 825 665 2.3 2.8 2.3

 1 Hires are the number of hires during the entire month. 2 The hires rate is the number of hires during the entire month as a percent of total employment. 3 See footnote 7, table 1. p = preliminary.

Levels (in thousands) Rates

Industry and region
Table 7. Total separations levels 1

 and rates 2 by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

Dec. Nov. Dec. Dec. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010p

Total............................................................ 3,900 3,584 3,916 3.0 2.7 3.0

INDUSTRY

Total private................................................ 3,654 3,377 3,649 3.4 3.1 3.4

Mining and logging.................................... 22 19 20 3.2 2.4 2.6

Construction............................................. 403 373 502 7.2 6.5 9.1

Manufacturing.......................................... 237 256 220 2.0 2.2 1.9

Durable goods....................................... 127 137 125 1.8 1.9 1.7

Nondurable goods.................................... 110 120 96 2.4 2.7 2.1

Trade, transportation, and utilities.................. 952 721 829 3.8 2.9 3.3

Wholesale trade....................................... 124 100 118 2.2 1.8 2.1

Retail trade............................................. 606 507 521 4.1 3.4 3.5

Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...... 222 114 189 4.6 2.4 3.9

Information................................................ 72 57 61 2.6 2.1 2.2

Financial activities...................................... 156 129 156 2.0 1.7 2.1

Finance and insurance.............................. 83 74 97 1.5 1.3 1.7

Real estate and rental and leasing............... 73 55 60 3.7 2.9 3.1

Professional and business services............... 707 696 813 4.3 4.1 4.8

Education and health services..................... 388 359 383 2.0 1.8 1.9

Educational services................................. 52 44 50 1.6 1.3 1.5

Health care and social assistance............... 336 315 333 2.1 1.9 2.0

Leisure and hospitality................................. 563 597 527 4.4 4.6 4.1

Arts, entertainment, and recreation............ 81 108 68 4.6 6.1 3.9

Accommodation and food services............ 483 489 459 4.4 4.4 4.1

Other services.......................................... 154 170 137 2.9 3.2 2.6

Government................................................ 246 207 267 1.1 .9 1.2

Federal................................................... 31 20 17 1.1 .7 .6

State and local........................................... 215 187 250 1.1 .9 1.3

REGION 3

Northeast................................................ 736 691 686 3.0 2.8 2.7

South...................................................... 1,278 1,229 1,452 2.7 2.6 3.1

Midwest................................................... 969 867 950 3.3 2.9 3.2

West...................................................... 917 797 828 3.2 2.7 2.8

 1 Total separations are the number of total separations during the entire month. 2 The total separations rate is the number of total separations during the entire month as a percent of total employment. 3 See footnote 7, table 1. p = preliminary.

Levels (in thousands) Rates

Industry and region
Table 8. Quits levels 1

 and rates 2 by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

Dec. Nov. Dec. Dec. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010p

Total............................................................ 1,402 1,508 1,565 1.1 1.1 1.2

INDUSTRY

Total private................................................ 1,318 1,435 1,488 1.2 1.3 1.4

Mining and logging.................................... 3 7 8 .5 .9 1.1

Construction............................................. 58 50 49 1.0 .9 .9

Manufacturing.......................................... 48 83 78 .4 .7 .7

Durable goods....................................... 22 41 38 .3 .6 .5

Nondurable goods.................................... 26 41 40 .6 .9 .9

Trade, transportation, and utilities.................. 345 357 348 1.4 1.4 1.4

Wholesale trade....................................... 31 29 35 .6 .5 .6

Retail trade............................................. 265 274 262 1.8 1.9 1.7

Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...... 49 54 51 1.0 1.1 1.1

Information................................................ 21 31 37 .8 1.1 1.4

Financial activities...................................... 66 56 72 .9 .7 1.0

Finance and insurance.............................. 35 36 41 .6 .6 .7

Real estate and rental and leasing............... 31 20 31 1.6 1.0 1.6

Professional and business services............... 226 277 314 1.4 1.6 1.9

Education and health services..................... 206 203 181 1.1 1.0 .9

Educational services................................. 23 24 22 .7 .7 .7

Health care and social assistance............... 184 179 160 1.1 1.1 1.0

Leisure and hospitality................................. 293 296 325 2.3 2.3 2.5

Arts, entertainment, and recreation............ 21 27 28 1.2 1.5 1.6

Accommodation and food services............ 272 269 297 2.5 2.4 2.7

Other services.......................................... 51 75 75 1.0 1.4 1.4

Government................................................ 84 73 77 .4 .3 .3

Federal................................................... 8 5 4 .3 .2 .2

State and local........................................... 76 68 73 .4 .3 .4

REGION 3

Northeast................................................ 214 232 231 .9 .9 .9

South...................................................... 558 605 644 1.2 1.3 1.4

Midwest................................................... 318 353 379 1.1 1.2 1.3

West...................................................... 313 317 312 1.1 1.1 1.1

 1 Quits are the number of quits during the entire month. 2 The quits rate is the number of quits during the entire month as a percent of total employment. 3 See footnote 7, table 1. p = preliminary.

Levels (in thousands) Rates

Industry and region
Table 9. Layoffs and discharges levels 1

 and rates 2 by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

Dec. Nov. Dec. Dec. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010p

Total............................................................ 2,219 1,789 2,019 1.7 1.4 1.5

INDUSTRY

Total private................................................ 2,111 1,693 1,885 2.0 1.6 1.7

Mining and logging.................................... 17 10 11 2.5 1.3 1.4

Construction............................................. 326 315 451 5.8 5.5 8.2

Manufacturing.......................................... 168 157 114 1.4 1.3 1.0

Durable goods....................................... 95 82 66 1.3 1.1 .9

Nondurable goods.................................... 73 74 49 1.6 1.7 1.1

Trade, transportation, and utilities.................. 563 305 427 2.2 1.2 1.7

Wholesale trade....................................... 84 57 73 1.5 1.0 1.3

Retail trade............................................. 314 201 228 2.1 1.4 1.5

Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...... 164 47 125 3.4 1.0 2.6

Information................................................ 45 21 19 1.6 .8 .7

Financial activities...................................... 79 59 66 1.0 .8 .9

Finance and insurance.............................. 39 28 39 .7 .5 .7

Real estate and rental and leasing............... 40 31 27 2.0 1.6 1.4

Professional and business services............... 441 359 430 2.7 2.1 2.5

Education and health services..................... 144 129 154 .7 .6 .8

Educational services................................. 26 17 22 .8 .5 .7

Health care and social assistance............... 118 112 132 .7 .7 .8

Leisure and hospitality................................. 250 262 178 2.0 2.0 1.4

Arts, entertainment, and recreation............ 59 78 38 3.4 4.5 2.2

Accommodation and food services............ 191 184 140 1.7 1.6 1.3

Other services.......................................... 80 77 36 1.5 1.4 .7

Government................................................ 108 96 134 .5 .4 .6

Federal................................................... 12 10 6 .4 .4 .2

State and local........................................... 96 86 128 .5 .4 .6

REGION 3

Northeast................................................ 463 412 402 1.9 1.6 1.6

South...................................................... 624 534 695 1.3 1.1 1.5

Midwest................................................... 597 429 489 2.0 1.4 1.6

West...................................................... 535 415 432 1.9 1.4 1.5

 1 Layoffs and discharges are the number of layoffs and discharges during the entire month. 2 The layoffs and discharges rate is the number of layoffs and discharges during the entire month as a percent of total 

employment.

 3 See footnote 7, table 1. p = preliminary.

Levels (in thousands) Rates

Industry and region
Table 10. Other separations levels 1

 and rates 2 by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

Dec. Nov. Dec. Dec. Nov. Dec.

2009 2010 2010p 2009 2010 2010p

Total............................................................ 279 287 332 0.2 0.2 0.3

INDUSTRY

Total private................................................ 225 249 276 .2 .2 .3

Mining and logging.................................... 1 2 1 .2 .2 .2

Construction............................................. 20 8 3 .4 .1 .1

Manufacturing.......................................... 20 17 28 .2 .1 .2

Durable goods....................................... 10 13 21 .1 .2 .3

Nondurable goods.................................... 11 4 7 .2 .1 .2

Trade, transportation, and utilities.................. 44 59 54 .2 .2 .2

Wholesale trade....................................... 9 14 10 .2 .2 .2

Retail trade............................................. 27 32 31 .2 .2 .2

Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...... 9 13 13 .2 .3 .3

Information................................................ 6 5 5 .2 .2 .2

Financial activities...................................... 11 15 18 .1 .2 .2

Finance and insurance.............................. 9 10 16 .2 .2 .3

Real estate and rental and leasing............... 2 5 2 .1 .2 .1

Professional and business services............... 40 60 70 .2 .4 .4

Education and health services..................... 38 26 48 .2 .1 .2

Educational services................................. 3 3 7 .1 .1 .2

Health care and social assistance............... 34 24 41 .2 .1 .2

Leisure and hospitality................................. 21 39 24 .2 .3 .2

Arts, entertainment, and recreation............ 1 2 2 .1 .1 .1

Accommodation and food services............ 19 36 22 .2 .3 .2

Other services.......................................... 23 18 26 .4 .3 .5

Government................................................ 54 38 56 .2 .2 .2

Federal................................................... 11 4 7 .4 .2 .2

State and local........................................... 43 34 49 .2 .2 .2

REGION 3

Northeast................................................ 58 45 53 .2 .2 .2

South...................................................... 100 92 113 .2 .2 .2

Midwest................................................... 53 85 82 .2 .3 .3

West...................................................... 68 65 84 .2 .2 .3

 1 Other separations are the number of other separations during the entire month. 2 The other separations rate is the number of other separations during the entire month as a percent of total employment. 3 See footnote 7, table 1. p = preliminary.

Levels (in thousands) Rates

Industry and region