There were 7.1 million job openings in the US at the end of August 2026, little changed from July, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on September 29. Hires were 5.2 million and quits 3.1 million, both steady. In plain terms, employers are still posting jobs, but neither they nor workers are moving much.
Key takeaways
- Job openings: 7.1 million, a rate of 4.3 percent.
- Hires: 5.2 million (rate 3.3 percent), little changed over the month and year.
- Quits: 3.1 million (rate 1.9 percent), unchanged.
- Layoffs and discharges: 1.6 million (rate 1.0 percent).
- July openings were revised up by 64,000 to 7.3 million.
What does a flat quits rate tell you?
BLS treats quits as a gauge of how willing or able workers are to leave their jobs. A 1.9 percent quits rate suggests people are holding on to what they have. For job seekers, that usually means fewer vacancies opening up from people moving on, and more competition for each opening.
Were there any changes by industry?
Openings changed little across all industries. Quits fell in wholesale trade (by 34,000) and in state and local government education (by 21,000), and rose in nondurable goods manufacturing (by 28,000) and private educational services (by 13,000). The job openings rate fell at the smallest employers, those with 1 to 9 staff.
What should job seekers take from this?
Openings exist, but not all of them are active hiring. Before you spend an hour on an application, check the signs in our guide on how to tell if a job is actually hiring. If you're thinking of leaving a job in a market like this, line up the next one first, and read our signs it's time to leave guide.
The September JOLTS report is scheduled for Tuesday, November 3, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern.
What is the background?
Openings have drifted down from the record highs of 2022 but are still well above the levels of the 2010s. What has changed is movement. Hires and quits have stayed low for months, which economists often call a low-hire, low-fire market. Layoffs remain at 1.0 percent, so most people who have a job are keeping it. The hard part is getting in, or getting out to something better.
Who does it affect?
New graduates, career changers and people returning to work feel it most, because they depend on new hiring rather than on keeping a current job. People who want to switch employers for a raise also have fewer options, since a low quits rate usually goes with smaller pay jumps for job changers. Workers at small firms may see the biggest change, given the fall in the openings rate at the smallest employers.
What should job seekers do now?
- If you have a job, think twice before quitting without an offer. Searches are taking longer.
- Ask for growth inside your current employer. A new title or project can be easier to win than a new job.
- Target employers that are actually hiring. Check that a post is recent and that the company has filled similar roles.
- Follow up on applications. Our guide to a follow-up email after no response has templates.
- Watch the next JOLTS release on November 3, 2026, for September data.
Source: BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary, August 2026.
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About the author
Lutaf Junijo
Career Content Editor, World Careers Hub
Lutaf Junijo is the Career Content Editor at World Careers Hub and Dev Global Jobs. He writes and edits our guides on jobs, CVs, visas, salaries and careers abroad, and he runs our official social media. Every fact is checked against official and trusted sources, named in the post, and errors are corrected as soon as readers report them.
