US Job Quits Tick Up

The number of job quits in the US rose slightly to 3.065 million in May 2026 from the upwardly revised 3.043 million in April but below 3.287 million a year ago. The quits rate stood at 1.9% in May, the lowest reading since 2020, unchanged from April, signaling subdued voluntary job departures. Quits increased primarily in accommodation and food services (+37,000); transportation, warehousing, and utilities (+32,000); professional and business services (+24,000) and federal government (+4,000). Conversely, declines were seen mostly in healthcare and social assistance (-35,000) and construction (-28,000). Regionally, quits rose in the South (+45,000) and the Northeast (+34,000), but decreased in the West (-49,000) and the Midwest (-9,000).

The number of job quits in the US fell to 2.977 million in April 2026 from the downwardly revised 3.160 million in March and below 3.144 million a year ago. It was the lowest reading since mid-2020. The quits rate edged down to 1.9% from 2.0%, marking its lowest reading since 2020 and signaling fewer workers voluntarily leaving their jobs. The number of quits declined primarily in retail trade (-48,000); professional and business services (-31,000); transportation, warehousing, and utilities (-30,000); health care and social assistance (-23,000) and finance & insurance (-22,000). Quits fell across most regions, with declines in the Northeast (-94,000), Midwest (-57,000), and South (-37,000), while the West registered a marginal increase of 5,000.

The number of job quits in the US rose to 3.171 million in March 2026 from the upwardly revised 3.046 million in February but below 3.456 million a year ago. The number of quits increased the most in healthcare and social assistance (+37,000); accommodation and food services (+25,000) and real estate and rental and leasing (+19,000), while declining in information (-10,000) and government (-5,000). The quits rate, a metric that measures voluntary job leavers as a proportion of total employment, rose to 2% from 1.9% previously. Regionally, all areas recorded increases, led by the South (+82,000), followed by the Midwest (+24,000), the West (+16,000) and the Northeast (+4,000).