Worker Retention
The rate at which workers quit their jobs reached a new high in November. Since January 2021, 43 million workers have quit jobs.
Quits rate by industry
Dec 2000 - Nov 2021
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics Notes: The quits rate is the number of quits during the entire month as a percent of total employment. Quits include employees who left voluntarily with the exception of retirements or transfers to other locations. Data is seasonally adjusted. Aug 2021 data is preliminary.
Since July 2021, more than 4 million employees quit their jobs every month. November reached a new all-time high of 4.5 million quits. The quits rate was highest in leisure and hospitality at 6.4% and in retail (part of trade, transportation & utilities) at 4.4% where wages are low and churn is typically high. But quits were also high in professional & business services at 3.7%1 The pandemic appears to have caused some workers to rethink their options. Workers are retiring early in larger numbers.2,3,4 Demands to return to the office are being successfully resisted by some higher-skilled workers,5 while other office workers have been required to return to the office.6 This is prompting employees to quit, concerned about poor workplace Covid precautions.7 In addition, more than 1 million parents of young children quit jobs in December due to lack of childcare (Child Care Disruptions) and an estimated 1.6 million workers are sidelined each month because of long-Covid symptoms.8 With fewer people in the labor market, workers are increasingly demanding higher wages and better working conditions.9
1. “Table 4. Quits levels and rates by industry and region, seasonally adjusted.” U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. January, 2022. https://www.bls.gov/news.release/jolts.t04.htm
2. “For Some People, Working From Home Sped Up Their Decision to Retire”. Sullivan. The New York Times. July, 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/09/your-money/pandemic-working-from-home-retire.html
3. “They Didn’t Expect to Retire Early. The Pandemic Changed Their Plans”. Schwartz, Marcos. The New York Times. July, 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/02/business/economy/retire-early-pandemic-social-security.html
4. “What Has Driven the Recent Increase in Retirements?” Nie, Yang. Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. August, 2021. https://www.kansascityfed.org/research/economic-bulletin/what-has-driven-the-recent-increase-in-retirements/
5. “Facebook Moderators Have Been Told They Can Work From Home After Employee Protests”. Emerson. BuzzFeed News. January, 2022. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/sarahemerson/facebook-moderators-who-were-ordered-back-to-the-officecan
6. “How the Return to Office Work Is Impoverishing the Middle Class”. Williams. Politico. December, 2021. https://www.politico.com/news/agenda/2021/12/08/returning-to-office-middle-class-523937?fbclid=IwAR1C_BEll33eUTu8lbq3M852jxSG_Saluuu6ixQdOHe4DOYqCG9x4QmkKKY
7. “‘Micromanaged and disrespected’: Top reasons workers are quitting their jobs in the ‘Great Resignation’”. Miller. The Washington Post. October, 2021. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/10/07/top-reasons-great-resignation-workers-quitting/
8. “Is ‘long Covid’ worsening the labor shortage?” Bach. Brookings. January, 2022. https://www.brookings.edu/research/is-long-covid-worsening-the-labor-shortage/?utm_campaign=Brookings%20Brief&utm_medium=email&utm_content=200588850&utm_source=hs_email
9. “Hunt for Cheap Labor Gets More Expensive for Corporate America”. Gupta. Bloomberg. January, 2022. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-01-07/hunt-for-cheap-labor-gets-more-expensive-for-corporate-america