The number of available jobs in the US just hit its lowest level in more than a year

<i>Spencer Platt/Getty Images via CNN Newsource</i><br/>Job seekers attend a career fair in Harlem on December 10

By CNN Newsource

Published January 7, 2026 8:02 AM

By Alicia Wallace, CNN

(CNN) — Finding a job continued to be a slog at the end of the year, new data shows: US businesses sought out fewer workers in November and hiring rates wilted even further.

The number of estimated job openings – a closely watched indicator of labor demand – fell to its lowest level in more than a year, slumping to 7.15 million at the end of November from 7.45 million the month before, according to the latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

With the exception of retail and construction, job openings trended lower across the majority of industries.

Hiring activity trended in a similar direction. There were an estimated 5.12 million new hires in November, a drop-off from 5.37 million the month before.

Job openings are at their lowest level since September 2024, while hires are at their lowest since June of that year.

Very few industries posted net gains during November, and those gains were meek. Information added 12,000 jobs, federal government gained 11,000 and construction got a boost of 11,000 new roles.

The hiring rate (hires as a percentage of total employment) slunk back to 3.2%, matching its lowest rate in more than a decade (excluding the pandemic), BLS data showed.

But Wednesday’s report showed that fewer employees were laid off in November and there was an uptick in workers quitting their jobs, an important indicator of worker confidence.

However, despite the monthly swings, the longstanding trend was clear: It remains a low-hire, low-fire labor market where the all-important turnover activity continues to grind slower and slower.

The November JOLTS report is one of several key pieces of labor market data released this week, culminating with the December jobs report on Friday morning.

Economists are expecting that the US labor market added about 55,000 jobs in December. That would cap off what was a sluggish year of employment gains as high uncertainty (from sweeping policies such as those related to tariffs) and dramatic shifts in the nation’s immigration flows weighed on hiring.

“You’re not seeing a dynamic labor market,” ADP chief economist Nela Richardson told reporters earlier Wednesday morning following the payroll company’s monthly release of private-sector hiring data.

A ‘K-shaped’ labor market

ADP on Wednesday reported that hiring activity in the US private sector rebounded in December after jobs were shed the month before.

Private-sector employers added an estimated 41,000 jobs last month, a higher-than-expected gain after posting a net loss of 29,000 jobs in November, according to ADP’s latest National Employment Report.

Health care and education businesses as well as those in the leisure and hospitality sector drove the job gains reported for December, adding an estimated 39,000 jobs and 24,000 jobs, respectively, for the month.

The biggest net job losses were in the professional and business services sector (-29,000) and the information sector (-12,000).

“Health services is an expensive type of service for most consumers; leisure and hospitality is a discretionary service for all consumers,” Richardson said during the call with reporters. “These two sectors are consistent with a K-shaped economy where higher-income consumers are driving spending.”

Businesses of all sizes added jobs last month, which marks a reversal from November, when the smallest firms saw a significant drop-off in employment.

“Small establishments recovered from November job losses with positive end-of-year hiring, even as large employers pulled back,” Richardson said in a statement on Wednesday.

Pay gains for people who stayed at their jobs held steady in November at 4.4%, while wage bumps for job-changers accelerated to 6.6% from 6.3%, ADP reported.