The table below details the monthly change in employment since January 2019. The onset of COVID in early 2020 caused a reversal of employment growth, with job losses occurring in March and exploding in April. The 20.5 million jobs lost in April was the most significant drop in monthly employment since the Bureau of Labor Statistics began tracking monthly changes in employment in 1939. Prior to 2020, the biggest drop in monthly employment was approximately 800,000 jobs in March 2009. Beginning in May 2020 employment growth returned, but employment gains lessened each month in 2020 beginning in August and job losses occurred in December. Strong employment growth returned in 2021, with monthly employment gains recorded each month and continuing in 2022.
All Employees, nonfarm Payrolls (seasonally adjusted) Change in Employment since Previous Month (thousands) (Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Year Dec 2019 279 24 224 288 77 130 78 160 163 93 252 200 2020 339 376 -1498 -20493 2642 4505 1388 1665 919 647 333 -115 2021 520 710 704 263 447 557 689 517 424 677 647 588 2022 504 750(P) 431(P) 2021 6.3 6.7 2.3 6.9 5.7 P : preliminary Job Openings The strong economic recovery and job market is reflected by the surge in job openings that occurred in 2021. Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov The chart below shows the number of U.S. monthly job openings over the last 10 years. Generally as the economy grew over the last decade, so did the number of job openings. Prior to 2014, the number of monthly job openings was generally below 5 million. The number of job openings steadily grew to a pre-COVID high of approximately 7.5 million in November 2018 before declining. As the economic recovery began in May 2020, the number of job openings steadily grew to 6.9 million by year end. However in 2021 the growth in job openings exploded, with the number of job openings peaking at nearly 11.5 million in December, a whopping 50% increase from one year earlier. Job openings remained strong in 2022, with the number of job openings exceeding 11 million.
U.S. Monthly Job Openings January 2012 through February 2022 (thousands) Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
The post-COVID economic recovery in terms of economic growth and employment have been strong; inflation has been the problem.
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Center for Business and Economic Insight
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