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Economic News Release
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Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey News Release

                                   
For release 10:00 a.m. (EST) Tuesday, January 11, 2011     USDL-11-0015

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 – November 2010


There were 3.2 million job openings on the last business day of
November, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The job
openings rate was essentially unchanged over the month at 2.4 percent.
Both the hires rate and the separations rate were little changed at
3.2 percent each in November. 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 November was 3.2 million, which was
little changed from 3.3 million in October. (See table 1.) Since the
most recent series trough in July 2009, the number of job openings has
risen by 0.9 million, or 39 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 November remained 1.1 million below the 4.4
million openings when the recession began in December 2007.

The number of job openings in November (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 and was
essentially unchanged in the remaining industries. The job openings
level was up over the year in all four regions. (See table 5.)

                                 - 2 -

Table A.  Job openings, hires, and total separations by industry, seasonally
adjusted
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                   |    Job openings    |       Hires        | Total separations
                   |--------------------------------------------------------------
     Industry      | Nov. | Oct. | Nov. | Nov. | Oct. | Nov. | Nov. | Oct. | Nov.
                   | 2009 | 2010 | 2010p| 2009 | 2010 | 2010p| 2009 | 2010 | 2010p
-------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------
                   |                     Levels (in thousands)
                   |--------------------------------------------------------------
Total..............|2,456 |3,328 |3,248 |4,160 |4,249 |4,210 |4,130 |4,084 |4,118
                   |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
 Total private(1)..|2,113 |2,998 |2,906 |3,878 |3,963 |3,916 |3,846 |3,798 |3,815
  Construction.....|   71 |   79 |   91 |  329 |  370 |  346 |  347 |  348 |  362
  Manufacturing....|  155 |  209 |  227 |  259 |  271 |  283 |  285 |  279 |  308
  Trade, trans-    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   portation, and  |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   utilities(2)....|  334 |  481 |  462 |  847 |  838 |  852 |  853 |  802 |  807
   Retail trade....|  207 |  279 |  242 |  554 |  591 |  593 |  544 |  559 |  560
  Professional     |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   and business    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   services........|  425 |  680 |  701 |  808 |  804 |  757 |  706 |  795 |  683
  Education and    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   health ser-     |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   vices...........|  537 |  638 |  547 |  512 |  483 |  516 |  486 |  424 |  486
  Leisure and      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   hospitality.....|  236 |  321 |  310 |  693 |  686 |  664 |  716 |  694 |  663
   Arts, enter-    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
    tainment and   |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
    recreation.....|   23 |   37 |   35 |  111 |  105 |  100 |  116 |  112 |  104
   Accommodation   |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
    and food       |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
    services.......|  214 |  284 |  275 |  582 |  581 |  564 |  600 |  582 |  559
 Government(3).....|  343 |  330 |  342 |  282 |  287 |  293 |  284 |  286 |  303
  State and local  |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   government......|  249 |  277 |  252 |  247 |  256 |  263 |  249 |  242 |  273
                   |--------------------------------------------------------------
                   |                       Rates (percent)
                   |--------------------------------------------------------------
Total..............|  1.9 |  2.5 |  2.4 |  3.2 |  3.3 |  3.2 |  3.2 |  3.1 |  3.2
                   |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
 Total private(1)..|  1.9 |  2.7 |  2.6 |  3.6 |  3.7 |  3.6 |  3.6 |  3.5 |  3.5
  Construction.....|  1.2 |  1.4 |  1.6 |  5.7 |  6.6 |  6.2 |  6.1 |  6.2 |  6.5
  Manufacturing....|  1.3 |  1.8 |  1.9 |  2.2 |  2.3 |  2.4 |  2.5 |  2.4 |  2.6
  Trade, trans-    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   portation, and  |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   utilities(2)....|  1.3 |  1.9 |  1.8 |  3.4 |  3.4 |  3.4 |  3.5 |  3.2 |  3.3
   Retail trade....|  1.4 |  1.9 |  1.7 |  3.9 |  4.1 |  4.1 |  3.8 |  3.9 |  3.9
  Professional     |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   and business    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   services........|  2.5 |  3.9 |  4.0 |  4.9 |  4.8 |  4.5 |  4.3 |  4.7 |  4.1
  Education and    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   health ser-     |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   vices...........|  2.7 |  3.1 |  2.7 |  2.7 |  2.5 |  2.6 |  2.5 |  2.2 |  2.5
  Leisure and      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   hospitality.....|  1.8 |  2.4 |  2.3 |  5.3 |  5.2 |  5.0 |  5.5 |  5.3 |  5.0
   Arts, enter-    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
    tainment and   |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
    recreation.....|  1.2 |  1.9 |  1.8 |  5.9 |  5.6 |  5.3 |  6.1 |  5.9 |  5.5
   Accommodation   |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
    and food       |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
    services.......|  1.9 |  2.5 |  2.4 |  5.2 |  5.2 |  5.0 |  5.4 |  5.2 |  5.0
 Government(3).....|  1.5 |  1.5 |  1.5 |  1.3 |  1.3 |  1.3 |  1.3 |  1.3 |  1.4
  State and local  |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |
   government......|  1.3 |  1.4 |  1.3 |  1.3 |  1.3 |  1.4 |  1.3 |  1.2 |  1.4
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  1 Includes mining and logging, information, financial activities, and
other services, not shown separately.
  2 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not
shown separately.
  3 Includes federal government, not shown separately.
  p = preliminary.

Hires
In November, the hires rate was little changed at 3.2 percent for
total nonfarm and was essentially unchanged for all industries and
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 November 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 November, the hires rate (not seasonally
adjusted) was unchanged for total nonfarm, total private, and
government. The hires rate increased over the past 12 months in
finance and insurance and was essentially unchanged in the remaining
industries. (See table 6.)

                                 - 3 -

Separations
Total separations includes quits (voluntary separations), layoffs and
discharges (involuntary separations), and other separations (including
retirements). The total separations, or turnover, rate in November was
essentially unchanged for total nonfarm, total private, and
government. The total separations rate increased for state and local
government. Over the 12 months ending in November, the total
separations rate (not seasonally adjusted) was unchanged for total
nonfarm, total private, and government. (See tables 3 and 7.)

The quits rate can serve as a measure of workers’ willingness or
ability to change jobs. In November, the quits rate was 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 November
(2.0 million) is higher than the series trough in September 2009 (1.7
million), but it is still well below the series peak in November 2006
(3.2 million).

Over the 12 months ending in November, the quits rate (not seasonally
adjusted) was essentially unchanged for all industries and regions.
Quits levels increased over the year in mining and logging and in the
Midwest region. (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 November for total nonfarm and total private but
increased for 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 November 2010. In government, the number of layoffs and
discharges in November (133,000) was higher than when the recession
began in December 2007 (117,000). (See table B below.)

The layoffs and discharges level (not seasonally adjusted) was
essentially unchanged over the 12 months ending in November for total
nonfarm, total private, and government. The layoffs and discharges
level declined over the year in transportation, warehousing, and
utilities; professional and business services; federal government; and
in the South region. (See table 9.)

Table B.  Layoffs and discharges by industry, seasonally adjusted
--------------------------------------------------------------------
                   | Levels (in thousands) |    Rates (percent)
                   |------------------------------------------------
     Industry      |  Nov. |  Oct. |  Nov. |  Nov. |  Oct. |  Nov.
                   |  2009 |  2010 |  2010p|  2009 |  2010 |  2010p
-------------------|------------------------------------------------
Total..............| 1,973 | 1,755 | 1,791 |  1.5  |  1.3  |  1.4
 Total private.....| 1,853 | 1,647 | 1,657 |  1.7  |  1.5  |  1.5
 Government........|   120 |   108 |   133 |  0.5  |  0.5  |  0.6
--------------------------------------------------------------------
  p = preliminary.

The other separations series is not seasonally adjusted. In November,
there were 280,000 other separations for total nonfarm, 244,000 for
total private, and 36,000 for government. Compared to November 2009,
the number of other separations was little changed for total nonfarm,
total private, and government. (See table 10.)

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

                                 - 4 -

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 November
2010, the proportion of quits for total nonfarm was 47 percent and the
proportion of layoffs and discharges was 43 percent. For total
private, the proportions were 48 percent quits and 43 percent layoffs
and discharges. For government, the proportions were 34 percent quits
and 44 percent layoffs and discharges. (See table C below.)

Table C.  Quits and layoffs and discharges as a percentage of total separations, seasonally adjusted
(Levels in thousands)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                   |                       Quits                      |             Layoffs and discharges
                   | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                   |      Nov.      |      Oct.      |      Nov.      |      Nov.      |      Oct.      |      Nov.
                   |      2009      |      2010      |      2010p     |      2009      |      2010      |      2010p
     Industry      | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                   |       |Portion |       |Portion |       |Portion |       |Portion |       |Portion |       |Portion
                   | Level |of total| Level |of total| Level |of total| Level |of total| Level |of total| Level |of total
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total..............| 1,837 |   44%  | 1,997 |   49%  | 1,953 |   47%  | 1,973 |   48%  | 1,755 |   43%  | 1,791 |   43%
 Total private.....| 1,731 |   45%  | 1,889 |   50%  | 1,849 |   48%  | 1,853 |   48%  | 1,647 |   43%  | 1,657 |   43%
 Government........|   106 |   37%  |   108 |   38%  |   103 |   34%  |   120 |   42%  |   108 |   38%  |   133 |   44%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  p = preliminary.

Net Change in Employment
Over the 12 months ending in November, hires (not seasonally adjusted)
totaled 50.8 million and separations (not seasonally adjusted) totaled
50.0 million, yielding a net employment gain of 0.8 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 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 December 2010
are scheduled to be released on Tuesday, February 8, 2011 at 10:00
a.m. (EST). Scheduled release dates for 2011 are as follows:
     
               Dec.   —  Feb. 8       June   —  Aug. 10
               Jan.   —  March 11     July   —  Sept. 7
               Feb.   —  April 13     Aug.   —  Oct. 12
               March  —  May 11       Sept.  —  Nov. 8
               April  —  June 7       Oct.   —  Dec. 13
               May    —  July 12




                                 - 5 -

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.  Full-time, 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 full-time, 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, full-time 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.

                                 - 6 -

  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 non-certainty 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 post-
stratified and re-weighted annually to represent the most recent
sampling frame.  Additionally, the out-of-business 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-

                                 - 7 -

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 non-sampling 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

                                 - 8 -

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

                                                      Levels(3) (in thousands)                              Rates

           Industry and region              Nov.   June   July   Aug.   Sept.  Oct.   Nov.   Nov.  June  July  Aug.  Sept. Oct.  Nov.
                                            2009   2010   2010   2010   2010   2010   2010p  2009  2010  2010  2010  2010  2010  2010p

Total....................................  2,456  2,864  3,141  3,092  3,011  3,328  3,248    1.9   2.1   2.4   2.3   2.3   2.5   2.4

                INDUSTRY

 Total private(4)........................  2,113  2,537  2,821  2,752  2,658  2,998  2,906    1.9   2.3   2.5   2.5   2.4   2.7   2.6
  Construction...........................     71     53    101     65     71     79     91    1.2    .9   1.8   1.1   1.2   1.4   1.6
  Manufacturing..........................    155    226    238    190    203    209    227    1.3   1.9   2.0   1.6   1.7   1.8   1.9
  Trade, transportation, and utilities(5)    334    449    485    449    472    481    462    1.3   1.8   1.9   1.8   1.9   1.9   1.8
   Retail trade..........................    207    284    295    263    265    279    242    1.4   1.9   2.0   1.8   1.8   1.9   1.7
  Professional and business services.....    425    514    564    590    559    680    701    2.5   3.0   3.3   3.4   3.2   3.9   4.0
  Education and health services..........    537    487    515    487    529    638    547    2.7   2.4   2.6   2.4   2.6   3.1   2.7
  Leisure and hospitality................    236    317    365    381    307    321    310    1.8   2.4   2.7   2.8   2.3   2.4   2.3
   Arts, entertainment, and recreation...     23     55     42     41     41     37     35    1.2   2.8   2.1   2.1   2.1   1.9   1.8
   Accommodation and food services.......    214    263    323    340    266    284    275    1.9   2.3   2.8   2.9   2.3   2.5   2.4
 Government(6)...........................    343    327    320    341    354    330    342    1.5   1.4   1.4   1.5   1.6   1.5   1.5
  State and local government.............    249    238    246    257    250    277    252    1.3   1.2   1.2   1.3   1.3   1.4   1.3


                 REGION(7)

  Northeast..............................    482    631    639    666    565    678    612    1.9   2.5   2.5   2.6   2.2   2.7   2.4
  South..................................    859    982  1,100  1,159  1,101  1,283  1,115    1.8   2.0   2.3   2.4   2.3   2.6   2.3
  Midwest................................    553    604    617    647    552    633    702    1.8   2.0   2.0   2.1   1.8   2.1   2.3
  West...................................    586    632    696    730    665    821    793    2.0   2.1   2.4   2.5   2.3   2.8   2.7


  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 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent 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.
  5 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not shown separately.
  6 Includes federal government, not shown separately.
  7 The States (including the District of Columbia) that comprise the regions are: Northeast: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts,
New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; South: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of
Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas,
Virginia, and West Virginia; Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio,
South Dakota, and Wisconsin; West: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah,
Washington, and Wyoming.
  p = preliminary.


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

                                                      Levels(3) (in thousands)                              Rates

           Industry and region              Nov.   June   July   Aug.   Sept.  Oct.   Nov.   Nov.  June  July  Aug.  Sept. Oct.  Nov.
                                            2009   2010   2010   2010   2010   2010   2010p  2009  2010  2010  2010  2010  2010  2010p

Total....................................  4,160  4,250  4,275  4,156  4,208  4,249  4,210    3.2   3.3   3.3   3.2   3.2   3.3   3.2

                INDUSTRY

 Total private(4)........................  3,878  3,946  3,985  3,891  3,953  3,963  3,916    3.6   3.7   3.7   3.6   3.7   3.7   3.6
  Construction...........................    329    289    361    357    336    370    346    5.7   5.2   6.4   6.4   6.0   6.6   6.2
  Manufacturing..........................    259    267    297    274    260    271    283    2.2   2.3   2.5   2.3   2.2   2.3   2.4
  Trade, transportation, and utilities(5)    847    876    864    798    863    838    852    3.4   3.5   3.5   3.2   3.5   3.4   3.4
   Retail trade..........................    554    589    608    571    606    591    593    3.9   4.1   4.2   4.0   4.2   4.1   4.1
  Professional and business services.....    808    825    810    831    818    804    757    4.9   4.9   4.8   5.0   4.9   4.8   4.5
  Education and health services..........    512    523    515    492    514    483    516    2.7   2.7   2.6   2.5   2.6   2.5   2.6
  Leisure and hospitality................    693    691    712    688    714    686    664    5.3   5.3   5.4   5.2   5.4   5.2   5.0
   Arts, entertainment, and recreation...    111    127    119    109    118    105    100    5.9   6.7   6.2   5.7   6.2   5.6   5.3
   Accommodation and food services.......    582    564    593    579    595    581    564    5.2   5.0   5.3   5.2   5.3   5.2   5.0
 Government(6)...........................    282    304    289    264    254    287    293    1.3   1.3   1.3   1.2   1.1   1.3   1.3
  State and local government.............    247    247    247    228    222    256    263    1.3   1.3   1.3   1.2   1.1   1.3   1.4


                 REGION(7)

  Northeast..............................    758    718    731    702    787    756    716    3.1   2.9   3.0   2.8   3.2   3.1   2.9
  South..................................  1,555  1,505  1,531  1,541  1,562  1,598  1,612    3.3   3.2   3.2   3.3   3.3   3.4   3.4
  Midwest................................    896  1,013  1,011    946    924    996    950    3.0   3.4   3.4   3.2   3.1   3.4   3.2
  West...................................    970    923    923    870    950    944    914    3.4   3.2   3.2   3.0   3.3   3.3   3.2


  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 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent 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.
  5 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not shown separately.
  6 Includes federal government, not shown separately.
  7 See footnote 7, table 1.
  p = preliminary.


Table 3.  Total separations levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, seasonally adjusted

                                                      Levels(3) (in thousands)                              Rates

           Industry and region              Nov.   June   July   Aug.   Sept.  Oct.   Nov.   Nov.  June  July  Aug.  Sept. Oct.  Nov.
                                            2009   2010   2010   2010   2010   2010   2010p  2009  2010  2010  2010  2010  2010  2010p

Total....................................  4,130  4,436  4,390  4,210  4,139  4,084  4,118    3.2   3.4   3.4   3.2   3.2   3.1   3.2

                INDUSTRY

 Total private(4)........................  3,846  3,884  3,940  3,796  3,761  3,798  3,815    3.6   3.6   3.7   3.5   3.5   3.5   3.5
  Construction...........................    347    314    361    321    334    348    362    6.1   5.6   6.5   5.7   5.9   6.2   6.5
  Manufacturing..........................    285    260    271    279    261    279    308    2.5   2.2   2.3   2.4   2.2   2.4   2.6
  Trade, transportation, and utilities(5)    853    874    855    814    813    802    807    3.5   3.5   3.5   3.3   3.3   3.2   3.3
   Retail trade..........................    544    604    613    583    569    559    560    3.8   4.2   4.2   4.0   3.9   3.9   3.9
  Professional and business services.....    706    777    830    808    774    795    683    4.3   4.7   5.0   4.8   4.6   4.7   4.1
  Education and health services..........    486    493    491    454    487    424    486    2.5   2.5   2.5   2.3   2.5   2.2   2.5
  Leisure and hospitality................    716    668    701    663    675    694    663    5.5   5.1   5.3   5.0   5.1   5.3   5.0
   Arts, entertainment, and recreation...    116    113    121    106    105    112    104    6.1   5.9   6.3   5.5   5.5   5.9   5.5
   Accommodation and food services.......    600    555    580    557    570    582    559    5.4   5.0   5.2   5.0   5.1   5.2   5.0
 Government(6)...........................    284    552    450    414    378    286    303    1.3   2.4   2.0   1.8   1.7   1.3   1.4
  State and local government.............    249    275    268    267    269    242    273    1.3   1.4   1.4   1.4   1.4   1.2   1.4


                 REGION(7)

  Northeast..............................    728    748    775    731    707    748    765    3.0   3.0   3.1   3.0   2.9   3.0   3.1
  South..................................  1,531  1,606  1,533  1,602  1,553  1,419  1,444    3.3   3.4   3.3   3.4   3.3   3.0   3.1
  Midwest................................    752    981  1,018    930    984    914    949    2.6   3.3   3.4   3.1   3.3   3.1   3.2
  West...................................    894    928    929    889    910    868    873    3.1   3.2   3.2   3.1   3.2   3.0   3.0


  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 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent 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.
  5 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not shown separately.
  6 Includes federal government, not shown separately.
  7 See footnote 7, table 1.
  p = preliminary.


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

                                                      Levels(3) (in thousands)                              Rates

           Industry and region              Nov.   June   July   Aug.   Sept.  Oct.   Nov.   Nov.  June  July  Aug.  Sept. Oct.  Nov.
                                            2009   2010   2010   2010   2010   2010   2010p  2009  2010  2010  2010  2010  2010  2010p

Total....................................  1,837  1,951  1,974  1,998  1,983  1,997  1,953    1.4   1.5   1.5   1.5   1.5   1.5   1.5

                INDUSTRY

 Total private(4)........................  1,731  1,819  1,855  1,881  1,860  1,889  1,849    1.6   1.7   1.7   1.7   1.7   1.7   1.7
  Construction...........................     92     67     72     81     85     81     65    1.6   1.2   1.3   1.4   1.5   1.4   1.2
  Manufacturing..........................     75    105     97    107     95    108    112     .6    .9    .8    .9    .8    .9   1.0
  Trade, transportation, and utilities(5)    413    443    451    425    452    417    427    1.7   1.8   1.8   1.7   1.8   1.7   1.7
   Retail trade..........................    276    331    347    322    351    318    316    1.9   2.3   2.4   2.2   2.4   2.2   2.2
  Professional and business services.....    264    325    357    385    350    411    359    1.6   1.9   2.1   2.3   2.1   2.4   2.1
  Education and health services..........    262    268    258    249    245    243    254    1.4   1.4   1.3   1.3   1.3   1.2   1.3
  Leisure and hospitality................    397    373    401    407    394    412    386    3.0   2.8   3.1   3.1   3.0   3.1   2.9
   Arts, entertainment, and recreation...     42     26     31     36     39     51     46    2.2   1.4   1.6   1.9   2.1   2.7   2.4
   Accommodation and food services.......    355    347    370    370    355    361    340    3.2   3.1   3.3   3.3   3.2   3.2   3.0
 Government(6)...........................    106    131    119    117    124    108    103     .5    .6    .5    .5    .6    .5    .5
  State and local government.............    101    105    100    101    112     96     95     .5    .5    .5    .5    .6    .5    .5


                 REGION(7)

  Northeast..............................    276    341    318    333    271    288    283    1.1   1.4   1.3   1.3   1.1   1.2   1.1
  South..................................    757    796    749    791    804    777    781    1.6   1.7   1.6   1.7   1.7   1.6   1.7
  Midwest................................    377    438    475    452    410    481    457    1.3   1.5   1.6   1.5   1.4   1.6   1.5
  West...................................    446    437    404    425    411    420    389    1.6   1.5   1.4   1.5   1.4   1.5   1.3


  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 Detail will not necessarily add to totals because of the independent 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.
  5 Includes wholesale trade and transportation, warehousing, and utilities, not shown separately.
  6 Includes federal government, not shown separately.
  7 See footnote 7, table 1.
  p = preliminary.


Table 5.  Job openings levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

                                                    Levels (in thousands)                  Rates

              Industry and region                  Nov.     Oct.     Nov.          Nov.     Oct.     Nov.
                                                   2009     2010     2010p         2009     2010     2010p

Total...........................................  2,212    3,531    2,910           1.7      2.6      2.2

                   INDUSTRY

 Total private..................................  1,891    3,189    2,580           1.7      2.8      2.3
  Mining and Logging............................     13       26       22           1.8      3.3      2.8
  Construction..................................     54       69       71            .9      1.2      1.2
  Manufacturing.................................    139      208      202           1.2      1.7      1.7
   Durable goods................................     68      147      148           1.0      2.0      2.0
   Nondurable goods.............................     70       62       55           1.5      1.3      1.2
  Trade, transportation, and utilities..........    299      541      386           1.2      2.1      1.5
   Wholesale trade..............................     54       99       99            .9      1.7      1.7
   Retail trade.................................    200      341      213           1.3      2.3      1.4
   Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...     45      101       74            .9      2.1      1.5
  Information...................................     42       80       79           1.5      2.9      2.8
  Financial activities..........................    167      340      265           2.1      4.3      3.4
   Finance and insurance........................    136      291      226           2.3      4.9      3.9
   Real estate and rental and leasing...........     31       49       38           1.6      2.5      2.0
  Professional and business services............    388      759      655           2.3      4.3      3.7
  Education and health services.................    501      672      516           2.5      3.3      2.5
   Educational services.........................     34       68       51           1.0      2.0      1.5
   Health care and social assistance............    466      604      466           2.8      3.5      2.7
  Leisure and hospitality.......................    199      339      251           1.5      2.5      1.9
   Arts, entertainment, and recreation..........     20       40       30           1.1      2.1      1.7
   Accommodation and food services.............     179      299      222           1.6      2.6      1.9
  Other services................................     91      155      133           1.7      2.8      2.4

 Government.....................................    322      342      330           1.4      1.5      1.4
  Federal.......................................     81       57       86           2.8      2.0      2.9
  State and local...............................    241      285      244           1.2      1.4      1.2

                    REGION (3)

  Northeast.....................................    441      725      559           1.7      2.8      2.2
  South.........................................    772    1,342      991           1.6      2.7      2.0
  Midwest.......................................    459      659      599           1.5      2.2      2.0
  West..........................................    541      805      761           1.8      2.7      2.5


  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.


Table 6.  Hires levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

                                                    Levels (in thousands)                  Rates

              Industry and region                  Nov.     Oct.     Nov.          Nov.     Oct.     Nov.
                                                   2009     2010     2010p         2009     2010     2010p

Total...........................................  3,671    4,534    3,695           2.8      3.4      2.8

                   INDUSTRY

 Total private..................................  3,465    4,248    3,479           3.2      3.9      3.2
  Mining and Logging............................     21       29       23           3.0      3.7      3.0
  Construction..................................    246      368      259           4.2      6.3      4.5
  Manufacturing.................................    209      282      229           1.8      2.4      2.0
   Durable goods................................    115      153      130           1.6      2.1      1.8
   Nondurable goods.............................     94      130       99           2.1      2.9      2.2
  Trade, transportation, and utilities..........    955      964      972           3.8      3.9      3.9
   Wholesale trade..............................    114      125      110           2.0      2.2      2.0
   Retail trade.................................    686      697      725           4.7      4.8      4.9
   Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...    154      141      136           3.2      2.9      2.8
  Information...................................     63       69       75           2.3      2.5      2.7
  Financial activities..........................    116      206      145           1.5      2.7      1.9
   Finance and insurance........................     76      151      105           1.3      2.7      1.9
   Real estate and rental and leasing...........     40       55       40           2.0      2.9      2.1
  Professional and business services............    753      885      678           4.5      5.2      4.0
  Education and health services.................    421      529      426           2.2      2.7      2.1
   Educational services.........................     44       92       57           1.3      2.8      1.7
   Health care and social assistance............    377      437      368           2.3      2.6      2.2
  Leisure and hospitality.......................    571      677      537           4.5      5.2      4.2
   Arts, entertainment, and recreation..........     87       82       73           5.0      4.4      4.2
   Accommodation and food services.............     483      596      464           4.4      5.3      4.1
  Other services................................    110      239      137           2.1      4.4      2.5

 Government.....................................    206      287      215            .9      1.3       .9
  Federal.......................................     29       30       24           1.0      1.1       .9
  State and local...............................    177      256      191            .9      1.3      1.0

                    REGION (3)

  Northeast.....................................    669      794      633           2.7      3.2      2.5
  South.........................................  1,385    1,680    1,459           2.9      3.5      3.1
  Midwest.......................................    757    1,077      786           2.5      3.6      2.6
  West..........................................    860      984      817           3.0      3.4      2.8


  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.


Table 7.  Total separations levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

                                                    Levels (in thousands)                  Rates

              Industry and region                  Nov.     Oct.     Nov.          Nov.     Oct.     Nov.
                                                   2009     2010     2010p         2009     2010     2010p

Total...........................................  3,574    4,409    3,540           2.7      3.4      2.7

                   INDUSTRY

 Total private..................................  3,387    4,179    3,348           3.1      3.8      3.1
  Mining and Logging............................     15       20       20           2.2      2.6      2.6
  Construction..................................    351      400      373           6.0      6.8      6.5
  Manufacturing.................................    243      315      270           2.1      2.7      2.3
   Durable goods................................    135      169      144           1.9      2.3      2.0
   Nondurable goods.............................    108      146      126           2.4      3.2      2.8
  Trade, transportation, and utilities..........    730      820      690           2.9      3.3      2.7
   Wholesale trade..............................    108      119      104           1.9      2.1      1.8
   Retail trade.................................    476      560      480           3.2      3.9      3.2
   Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...    145      141      107           3.0      2.9      2.2
  Information...................................     68       71       57           2.5      2.6      2.1
  Financial activities..........................    102      204      136           1.3      2.7      1.8
   Finance and insurance........................     52      143       79            .9      2.5      1.4
   Real estate and rental and leasing...........     50       61       57           2.5      3.1      3.0
  Professional and business services............    700      870      652           4.2      5.1      3.8
  Education and health services.................    352      407      359           1.8      2.1      1.8
   Educational services.........................     37       46       43           1.1      1.4      1.3
   Health care and social assistance............    316      361      315           1.9      2.2      1.9
  Leisure and hospitality.......................    671      869      618           5.3      6.6      4.8
   Arts, entertainment, and recreation..........    128      177      110           7.3      9.5      6.3
   Accommodation and food services.............     544      692      508           4.9      6.1      4.5
  Other services................................    154      203      174           2.9      3.8      3.2

 Government.....................................    186      230      192            .8      1.0       .8
  Federal.......................................     27       40       20            .9      1.4       .7
  State and local...............................    160      190      173            .8      1.0       .9

                    REGION (3)

  Northeast.....................................    677      835      691           2.7      3.3      2.8
  South.........................................  1,321    1,552    1,195           2.8      3.3      2.5
  Midwest.......................................    745    1,030      882           2.5      3.4      2.9
  West..........................................    830      992      772           2.9      3.4      2.6


  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.


Table 8.  Quits levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

                                                    Levels (in thousands)                  Rates

              Industry and region                  Nov.     Oct.     Nov.          Nov.     Oct.     Nov.
                                                   2009     2010     2010p         2009     2010     2010p

Total...........................................  1,457    2,174    1,535           1.1      1.7      1.2

                   INDUSTRY

 Total private..................................  1,385    2,086    1,467           1.3      1.9      1.3
  Mining and Logging............................      4        9        9            .5      1.2      1.1
  Construction..................................     71       96       49           1.2      1.6       .8
  Manufacturing.................................     55      123       81            .5      1.0       .7
   Durable goods................................     28       55       42            .4       .8       .6
   Nondurable goods.............................     27       68       39            .6      1.5       .9
  Trade, transportation, and utilities..........    339      435      349           1.4      1.7      1.4
   Wholesale trade..............................     47       47       29            .8       .8       .5
   Retail trade.................................    240      331      265           1.6      2.3      1.8
   Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...     53       56       55           1.1      1.2      1.1
  Information...................................     32       42       34           1.2      1.6      1.2
  Financial activities..........................     47       92       63            .6      1.2       .8
   Finance and insurance........................     27       64       41            .5      1.1       .7
   Real estate and rental and leasing...........     20       28       22           1.0      1.4      1.2
  Professional and business services............    230      477      295           1.4      2.8      1.7
  Education and health services.................    200      256      195           1.0      1.3      1.0
   Educational services.........................     21       29       22            .6       .9       .7
   Health care and social assistance............    179      227      172           1.1      1.4      1.0
  Leisure and hospitality.......................    328      465      315           2.6      3.5      2.4
   Arts, entertainment, and recreation..........     27       60       32           1.6      3.2      1.9
   Accommodation and food services.............     301      405      282           2.7      3.6      2.5
  Other services................................     78       92       78           1.5      1.7      1.4

 Government.....................................     73       88       68            .3       .4       .3
  Federal.......................................      4        8        5            .1       .3       .2
  State and local...............................     69       80       62            .3       .4       .3

                    REGION (3)

  Northeast.....................................    215      320      229            .9      1.3       .9
  South.........................................    595      843      629           1.3      1.8      1.3
  Midwest.......................................    298      550      369           1.0      1.8      1.2
  West..........................................    350      461      308           1.2      1.6      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.


Table 9.  Layoffs and discharges levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

                                                    Levels (in thousands)                  Rates

              Industry and region                  Nov.     Oct.     Nov.          Nov.     Oct.     Nov.
                                                   2009     2010     2010p         2009     2010     2010p

Total...........................................  1,896    1,934    1,726           1.4      1.5      1.3

                   INDUSTRY

 Total private..................................  1,815    1,836    1,637           1.7      1.7      1.5
  Mining and Logging............................     11        7       10           1.6       .9      1.2
  Construction..................................    273      281      316           4.6      4.8      5.5
  Manufacturing.................................    177      166      171           1.5      1.4      1.5
   Durable goods................................    101       95       87           1.4      1.3      1.2
   Nondurable goods.............................     76       71       84           1.7      1.6      1.9
  Trade, transportation, and utilities..........    343      325      282           1.4      1.3      1.1
   Wholesale trade..............................     56       62       62           1.0      1.1      1.1
   Retail trade.................................    202      188      179           1.4      1.3      1.2
   Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...     85       75       41           1.8      1.6       .9
  Information...................................     29       25       19           1.1       .9       .7
  Financial activities..........................     45       97       57            .6      1.3       .8
   Finance and insurance........................     19       67       27            .3      1.2       .5
   Real estate and rental and leasing...........     26       31       30           1.3      1.6      1.6
  Professional and business services............    414      346      301           2.5      2.0      1.8
  Education and health services.................    132      120      137            .7       .6       .7
   Educational services.........................     13       14       19            .4       .4       .6
   Health care and social assistance............    119      106      118            .7       .6       .7
  Leisure and hospitality.......................    325      374      266           2.5      2.8      2.1
   Arts, entertainment, and recreation..........     96      113       75           5.5      6.1      4.3
   Accommodation and food services.............     228      261      191           2.1      2.3      1.7
  Other services................................     66       95       79           1.2      1.8      1.5

 Government.....................................     81       98       89            .4       .4       .4
  Federal.......................................     18       24       10            .6       .8       .4
  State and local...............................     63       74       79            .3       .4       .4

                    REGION (3)

  Northeast.....................................    435      455      419           1.7      1.8      1.7
  South.........................................    630      592      473           1.3      1.2      1.0
  Midwest.......................................    396      410      432           1.3      1.4      1.4
  West..........................................    435      477      402           1.5      1.6      1.4


  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.


Table 10.  Other separations levels(1) and rates(2) by industry and region, not seasonally adjusted

                                                    Levels (in thousands)                  Rates

              Industry and region                  Nov.     Oct.     Nov.          Nov.     Oct.     Nov.
                                                   2009     2010     2010p         2009     2010     2010p

Total...........................................    220      302      280           0.2      0.2      0.2

                   INDUSTRY

 Total private..................................    188      258      244            .2       .2       .2
  Mining and Logging............................      1        4        1            .1       .6       .2
  Construction..................................      7       23        9            .1       .4       .2
  Manufacturing.................................     12       25       18            .1       .2       .2
   Durable goods................................      6       18       14            .1       .3       .2
   Nondurable goods.............................      6        7        4            .1       .2       .1
  Trade, transportation, and utilities..........     47       61       59            .2       .2       .2
   Wholesale trade..............................      5        9       13            .1       .2       .2
   Retail trade.................................     34       41       36            .2       .3       .2
   Transportation, warehousing, and utilities...      8       11       11            .2       .2       .2
  Information...................................      6        5        4            .2       .2       .2
  Financial activities..........................      9       15       15            .1       .2       .2
   Finance and insurance........................      6       13       11            .1       .2       .2
   Real estate and rental and leasing...........      4        2        4            .2       .1       .2
  Professional and business services............     56       46       56            .3       .3       .3
  Education and health services.................     21       31       27            .1       .2       .1
   Educational services.........................      2        3        2            .1       .1       .1
   Health care and social assistance............     18       29       24            .1       .2       .1
  Leisure and hospitality.......................     18       30       37            .1       .2       .3
   Arts, entertainment, and recreation..........      4        5        2            .2       .2       .1
   Accommodation and food services.............      14       26       34            .1       .2       .3
  Other services................................     10       17       18            .2       .3       .3

 Government.....................................     32       44       36            .1       .2       .2
  Federal.......................................      4        8        4            .2       .3       .2
  State and local...............................     28       37       31            .1       .2       .2

                    REGION (3)

  Northeast.....................................     27       62       42            .1       .2       .2
  South.........................................     97      116       95            .2       .2       .2
  Midwest.......................................     50       69       81            .2       .2       .3
  West..........................................     46       55       61            .2       .2       .2


  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.


Last Modified Date: January 11, 2011