Job openings reach two-year high at 7.6 million
June 2 (UPI) -- The number of job openings in the United States increased to 7.6 million in April, the highest level in nearly two years, the Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed Tuesday.
The figure represented an increase of 731,000 jobs over the month of March. This is the highest number of job openings in the United States since May 2024. Economists had expected the figure to be around 6.8 million openings, declining for a third month in a row.
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey indicated that more than 90% of the new openings in April were in the professional and business services industry.
The number of people voluntarily quitting their jobs dropped from 3.2 million in March to 2.98 million in April. Quitting rates haven't been this low since August 2020.
Layoffs also fell to a three-month low -- 1.7 million -- and hiring activity declined after a spike in March. Businesses hired 5.12 million workers in April, down by 419,000 hires from March.
"For now, the labor market remains mostly stable," Matthew Martin, senior U.S. economist at Oxford Economics, said in a note reported by CNBC. "With the quits rate and the layoff rate ticking down in April, neither employees nor employers are in a hurry to make moves.
"The U.S./Israel-Iran war will test the labor market. Weaker household spending and uncertainty are likely to influence firms' hiring intentions."
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This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 1:07 PM.