MarketWatch (11/01/22) Bartash, Jeffry

Job openings increased to 10.7 million in September from 10.3 million in August, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Although companies still have a high number of open jobs, the total has dropped from a record 11.9 million in March. Yet the U.S. Federal Reserve would like the mismatch between high job openings and the relative scarcity of available workers to contract at a quicker pace. Senior Fed officials are concerned the labor shortage is prompting wages to spike and adding to already high inflation.

The number of people hired in September slipped to 6.1 million from 6.3 million, marking the lowest level in 15 months. That could be a sign companies aren’t rushing to fill job openings anymore. The number of job quitters declined to 4.1 million, but that figure is still unusually high. Quits have topped 4.0 million for 15 consecutive months. The quits rate among private-sector workers edged down to 2.9%. It peaked at 3.4% near the end of 2021.

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