Job openings tumble more than expected to the lowest since January 2021

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The number of job openings in the U.S. unexpectedly fell in September to the lowest level since January 2021, suggesting that the labor market is continuing to ease. 

Job openings declined by 418,000 to 7.443 million by the last day of September, the lowest level in over three and a half years, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said Tuesday in its Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, known as the JOLTS report.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 8 million job openings. Hires increased by 123,000 to 5.558 million, while layoffs rose by 165,000 to 1.833 million.

«The September JOLTS report points towards continued labor market cooling, with notable drops in job openings and quits, and a sizable uptick in layoffs,» Julia Pollak, chief economist at ZipRecruiter, told FOX Business.

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The number of job openings fell unexpectedly in September to the lowest level since 2021. (Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg via / Getty Images)

«Workers' leverage in the job market has eroded significantly, with the labor leverage ratio (the ratio of quits to layoffs) dipping below pre-COVID levels for the first time since the pandemic recession, and falling about 50% since the peak of the Great Resignation,» she added.

The August data was also revised down to show 7.861 million unfilled positions instead of the previously reported 8.04 million job openings. 

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The JOLTS report showed weakening leverage for job seekers. (Angus Mordant/Bloomberg via / Getty Images)

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