U.S. Hiring Trends

Bureau of Labor Statistics Snapshot*

The job market is still tight as job openings and quits remain high, and the unemployment rate hovers near a historic low.

9.6 million*

Job openings (March)

3.9 million*

Employees who quit jobs (March)

3.4%

Unemployment rate (April)

26.4%

Job openings that are remote (April)

*U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, preliminary and seasonally adjusted

Get more insights about the latest BLS Employment Situation Report on our blog.


Hiring Needs Outweigh Economic Uncertainty

  • Even amid layoffs in some sectors, many organizations nationwide are hiring, and the labor market remains tight.
  • Government, healthcare and professional services drove job growth in Q4 2022.
  • Job openings are still near historic highs, and the pool of job seekers continues to shrink.
  • Quit rates have also stayed high, and job openings still outnumber candidates nearly 2-to-1.

90%

of hiring managers still face tough challenges in landing new talent.

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Companies’ Hiring Plans

First half of 2023

  • Hiring for new roles58%

  • Hiring for vacated positions39%

  • Freezing hiring3%

  • Eliminating positions0%

Second half of 2022

  • Hiring for new roles46%

  • Hiring for vacated positions 46%

  • Freezing hiring6%

  • Eliminating positions2%

Workers Worry More About Economy Than Jobs

What concerns them:

Rising prices/interest rates

The overall economy

Ability to find a new job

Job security

Employers May See More Turnover in 2023

  • More professionals want new jobs now than in the last half of 2022 (see graphs at right) — leaving the onus on employers to boost retention efforts and attract top talent looking for a change.
  • Among those most likely to make a move are 18- to 25-year-olds (60%), employees with 2 to 4 years’ tenure (55%) and working parents (53%).
  • The potential for career advancement within a company could help retain workers.

14 Effective Employee Retention Strategies

Workers planning to seek new jobs in Q1-Q2 2023

Those who planned to seek new jobs in Q3-Q4 2022

Your Resource for Meeting Today’s Hiring Challenges

Local Hiring Trends

Find out where the job market is the hottest, with key insights into local postings, remote work options and in-demand roles.

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Remote Job Trends

The divide over remote work deepens — plus see which roles are yielding the most remote opportunities.

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In-Demand Roles and Hiring Trends by Profession

See which jobs employers want to hire for soon, based on Robert Half’s unique demand scoring system.

Report Methodology

The ranking of roles is based on proprietary analysis of more than 8 million positions posted on more than 1,000 independent job boards and company websites, specialized unemployment rates from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and placement data from Robert Half.

Job roles included in this report span 75 categories within the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 2018 Standard Occupation Classification (SOC) code system for the administrative and customer support, finance and accounting, healthcare support, human resources, legal, marketing and creative, and technology professions.

Robert Half’s analysis removes any repeat postings made within 30 days of the original posting.