The number of job openings in the United States fell in November, according to a Labor Department report released Wednesday, underscoring sluggish hiring even as the broader economy has shown signs of growth.
Businesses and government agencies posted 7.1 million open jobs at the end of November, down from 7.4 million in October, the report said. Layoffs also dropped, as some companies appeared to keep workers even while adding staff more cautiously.
The jobs data were released as the job openings and labor turnover survey, or JOLTS. The AP report said the figures suggest a “low-hire, low-fire” labor market, in which workers may have some job security while people looking for new jobs face a harder time finding openings.
The AP report contrasted the softer job-market snapshot with data showing economic growth that topped 4% at an annual rate in the July-September quarter, the latest data available in the story. Economists forecast that growth would slow but remain solid in the final three months of 2025.
The report also pointed to upcoming data: the AP said additional insight was expected Friday with the release of the monthly jobs report for December. It said that the number of postings in November was the fewest since September 2024 and, outside that month, the lowest in nearly five years.
The report described a mixed picture by sector. Openings fell sharply in shipping and warehousing, in restaurants and hotels, and in state and local government, while openings rose in retail and construction.
It also said quits ticked higher in November. The number of Americans quitting jobs rose to 3.16 million, up from just under 3 million in October, though the AP report said quits remained historically low. The story described quits as a positive sign in general because workers typically quit when they are more confident they can find a better job, or already have one.
In related reporting, payroll data company ADP said businesses added 41,000 jobs in December after shedding 29,000 positions in November. ADP said its monthly report is based on anonymous payroll records covering 26 million employees.
The AP report said small firms—those with fewer than 50 workers—added 9,000 jobs in December, describing it as a reversal after they shed jobs in previous months. It also said smaller firms have been hard hit by President Donald Trump’s tariffs, with less ability than larger companies to absorb or pass on the costs.
In a quoted assessment, ADP chief economist Nela Richardson said: “It is a slower labor market.” She added: “The labor market isn’t falling off a cliff,” and said, “We still see some job growth, and we don’t see an uptick in layoffs.”
The Bank of America Institute, which tracks changes in paychecks landing in customers’ accounts, said it saw signs that hiring picked up in December. The AP report said job gains rose to 0.6% in December compared with a year earlier, up from 0.2% in November, and quoted David Tinsley, the institute’s senior economist, saying: “It does look like, in our data, that the worst of the slowdown could be behind us.”