Demand for workers remains strong despite mounting economic gloom
Source: Washington Post
ECONOMY
Demand for workers remains strong despite mounting economic gloom
U.S. employers reported 11.3 million job openings, down from 11.4 million in April, but still well above pre-pandemic levels.
By Abha Bhattarai
July 6, 2022 at 10:05 a.m. EDT
U.S. employers remained eager to hire in May, adding fuel to a red-hot labor market that continues to serve as a bulwark against growing recession fears.
Employers posted 11.3 million job openings in that month, down from a peak of 11.8 million in March and 11.4 million in April, but still well above pre-pandemic levels, according to a report released Wednesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. (1)
Roughly 4.3 million Americans quit or changed jobs in May, reflecting a job market where workers continue to have the upper hand. Overall hiring, meanwhile, slowed slightly, with businesses adding 6.5 million workers in May, compared with 6.6 million a month earlier. Layoffs, meanwhile, remained near record lows.
“There’s a whirlwind of recession chatter, but the U.S. labor market continues to be quite strong,” said Nick Bunker, an economist at the jobs site Indeed. “Demand for workers might be stagnating, but it’s still at very elevated levels. The labor market is not signaling a recession.”
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By Abha Bhattarai
Abha Bhattarai is the economics correspondent for The Washington Post. She previously covered retail for the publication. Twitter https://twitter.com/abhabhattarai
(1) https://www.bls.gov/news.release/jolts.nr0.htm
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/07/06/jobs-quits-hires-layoffs/
Employers posted fewer job openings in May, but the labor market stayed hot
washingtonpost.com
Demand for workers remains strong despite mounting economic gloom
The strong labor market remains a source of optimism for economists and policymakers.
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