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Hires and quits rose in 2017

March 23, 2018

There were 65.3 million hires in 2017, an increase from 63.2 million in 2016. Total separations (the sum of quits, layoffs and discharges, and other separations) rose in 2017 to 63.0 million. Quits rose for the eighth consecutive year, reaching 38.2 million in 2017. Quits comprised 61 percent of total separations in 2017.

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Chart Data

Annual hires and separations, 2001–17
Year	Hires	Total separations	Layoffs and discharges	Quits	Other separations
2001	62,727,000	64,560,000	24,271,000	35,784,000	4,506,000
2002	58,416,000	58,942,000	22,719,000	31,655,000	4,566,000
2003	56,919,000	56,961,000	23,420,000	29,251,000	4,292,000
2004	60,236,000	58,224,000	22,584,000	31,444,000	4,201,000
2005	63,089,000	60,633,000	22,151,000	34,380,000	4,102,000
2006	63,491,000	61,284,000	20,856,000	35,692,000	4,731,000
2007	62,239,000	60,984,000	21,997,000	34,718,000	4,270,000
2008	54,764,000	58,209,000	23,969,000	30,391,000	3,850,000
2009	46,190,000	51,358,000	26,557,000	21,112,000	3,689,000
2010	48,659,000	47,649,000	21,703,000	22,051,000	3,897,000
2011	50,253,000	48,214,000	20,756,000	23,581,000	3,877,000
2012	52,332,000	50,131,000	20,942,000	25,142,000	4,047,000
2013	54,297,000	51,937,000	19,889,000	27,715,000	4,328,000
2014	58,629,000	55,596,000	20,402,000	30,590,000	4,604,000
2015	62,027,000	59,296,000	20,963,000	33,732,000	4,604,000
2016	63,240,000	60,896,000	20,152,000	36,339,000	4,405,000
2017	65,259,000	63,031,000	20,676,000	38,180,000	4,175,000

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Layoffs and discharges edged up in 2017 to 20.7 million and comprised 33 percent of total separations. Other separations declined in 2017 to 4.2 million and comprised 7 percent of total separations.

These data are from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. To learn more, see "Job Openings and Labor Turnover — January 2018" (HTML) (PDF). Quits are generally voluntary separations initiated by the employee. Layoffs and discharges are involuntary separations initiated by employers. Other separations include retirements, transfers to other locations, deaths, and separations because of disability. We also have more charts featuring data on job openings, hires, and separations.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Hires and quits rose in 2017 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2018/hires-and-quits-rose-in-2017.htm (visited December 08, 2024).

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