In April a record number of companies advertised job openings in the US – the highest number in 15 years.
According to The US Labor Department, at the end of April the number of open jobs increased by 200,000 to 5.4 million.
Job openings increased over the year for most industries with the biggest increases in business services and health care. The only sectors to report a decrease in job openings over the year were mining, logging, entertainment, and recreation.
The figures indicate that employers expect more customer demand in the upcoming months.
Recent job reports indicate that the US labor market is beginning to come out of its slump
Last month the unemployment rate increased from 5.4 percent to 5.5 percent. While that may seem like bad news it means that more Americans are looking for work – meaning that there are now fewer people who have stopped searching for work.
In April the number of workers who quit was 11% higher than the year before, suggesting that people with jobs are willing to leave them to look for better paying ones.
Companies can’t find qualified workers
Despite the increase in job openings, hiring dropped from 5.1 million to 5 million in April. The reason for this disparity is that employers are not able to hire qualified workers.