Your Evening Briefing: US Bosses May Have the Upper Hand Again
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The dynamism that’s been giving the US labor market some of its edge may be slowing down. The number of people who go directly from one job to the next has fallen by more than half a percentage point in recent months, according to data released by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia. The dwindling numbers of job switchers—often the most highly skilled—could suggest some workers are insecure about their prospects, or that headhunters aren’t as busy as they once were.
The number of available positions has edged down from more than 12 million in March 2022 to 8.76 million, mainly reflecting a slowdown in the labor market. The measure of voluntary job-leavers as a share of total employment dropped to its lowest since 2020. To be sure, this kind of cool down is exactly what the Fed is shooting for in its bid to lower inflation toward its 2% goal. But for workers, that bosses may again have the upper hand is never welcome news.