The U.S. labor market held steady in February, with job openings, hires, and separations showing little month-over-month movement despite rising anticipation of new tariffs from the Trump administration.
Job openings slipped to 7.6 million from 7.8 million in January, according to the Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). The decline was led by notable drops in retail, finance, and leisure and hospitality. Even so, the job openings rate only edged down to 4.5 percent, and hiring held firm at 5.4 million with a stable 3.4 percent rate.
Economists had expected 7.6 million openings. Before rounding, openings declined to 7.568 million, slightly below the forecast. The prior month’s figure was revised up to 7.762 million from 7.740 million.
“The number of job openings per unemployed worker was unchanged at 1.1 in February, close to its historical average. Economists and Federal Reserve officials use this ratio as a key gauge of the balance between labor demand and supply. At its peak in 2022, the ratio reached 2 to 1—a sign of an overheated labor market.
The quits rate—widely seen as a sign of worker confidence—was unchanged at 2.0 percent. That’s near its pre-pandemic average, suggesting most workers still feel secure in their jobs, even if they’re no longer chasing big pay bumps by switching employers.
“The labor market remains stable,” said Julia Pollak, Chief Economist at the Department of Labor, in a post on X.
The labor market remains stable https://t.co/utEzNt3rIO
— Julia Pollak (@juliaonjobs) April 1, 2025
Government and government-adjacent sectors saw more churn. Federal layoffs rose by 18,000, reaching their highest level since late 2020. Meanwhile, quits in state and local education climbed by 28,000. In the health care and social assistance sector—often referred to as “government-adjacent” sectors because of their deep government ties—job openings fell by 46,000.
The data arrives just ahead of President Donald Trump’s scheduled tariff announcement, expected to unveil a new wave of reciprocal trade measures. While some analysts have speculated that tariff uncertainty could dampen business investment and hiring, the February figures suggest those concerns have yet to materialize in the labor market.
