There were 300,000 more job openings in the United States in February than in January, marking the highest it has been in six years, according to a report the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released on April 8.
Retail, accommodations and food services along with professional and business services showed the most gains.
However, job openings in construction, manufacturing, arts, entertainment and recreation fell, the report said. The number of job openings in government also fell.
The BLS report on job openings and labor turnover showed there were nearly 4.2 million job openings at the end of February compared to 3.9 million at the end of January.
In addition, the number of newly hired workers increased in February compared to January by about 71,000 while 35,000 fewer people lost their jobs or left voluntarily during February.
In total, there were 4.6 million workers hired in February and 4.2 million workers who lost or left their jobs.
In one sign the BLS said could indicate an improving labor market, the number of workers who left jobs voluntarily increased by about 14,000 between January and February, a possible sign workers are growing more confident they will be able to find new jobs.
Also, the number of workers who were laid off or discharged fell by 84,000, the report said. Every industry tracked by the BLS showed fewer workers were laid off or discharged in February than in January.
The BLS report did not say how many of the job openings in February were filled by employers.
For the 12 months from February 2013 to 2014 employment saw a net gain of 2.1 million jobs.
Some other employment changes from January to February include:
- 12,000 fewer job openings in durable goods manufacturing
- 110,000 more job openings in retail
- 202,000 more job openings in business and professional services
- 109,000 more job openings in trade, transportation and utilities
- 5,000 fewer job openings in local and state government
- 34,000 workers were laid off or dismissed in the South and in the West
