We keep reading in the media about how the economy is improving but these latest job opening numbers don’t show that.

Job openings are now at the lowest level since early 2021 and below end-of-2018 levels.  Openings have been trending down since early 2022, as have quits, which are now at the lowest level (excluding covid) since early 2018. (People hold on to their existing jobs longer when hiring slows down.) Hires increased, but are still within their own downward trend that also began in early 2022.

What does this mean for workers? Their leverage in the job market “has eroded significantly, with the labor leverage ratio (the ratio of quits to layoffs) dipping below pre-COVID levels for the first time since the pandemic recession, falling about 50% since the peak of the Great Resignation,” according to Julia Pollak, chief economist at ZipRecruiter in FOX Business.

JOLTS data can be very noisy and see very large revisions (down 16 of the last 21 months) because the survey has a mere 30% response rate. Still, the trend is not friendly and indicates a significant softening of labor market conditions.

This makes sense given the number of firms that are now forcing workers back to the office if they want to keep their jobs. Show up or you’re fired.