The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics developed the monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) which produces
data on job openings, hires, and separations.
These
data serve as demand-side indicators of labor shortages at the national level. Prior to JOLTS, there was no economic indicator of the unmet demand for labor with which to assess the presence or extent of labor shortages in the
United States. The availability of unfilled jobs—the job openings rate—is an important measure of the tightness of job markets, parallel to existing measures of unemployment.
The JOLTS survey covers all nonagricultural industries in the public and
private sectors for the 50 States and the District of
Columbia.
JOLTS collects
data on Total Employment, Job Openings, Hires, Quits, Layoffs & Discharges, and Other Separations.