Arkansas job openings, hires, layoffs fall in January

Job openings in Arkansas during January fell 30% compared with January 2023, and hiring during the month fell 14.2% compared with January 2023, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). U.S. job openings fell 15% in January, and hiring fell 10.8%.

The BLS report had Arkansas job openings at an estimated 71,000 in January, 30% below the 101,000 in January 2023, and below the 78,000 in December. New hires in Arkansas totaled 54,000, down 14.2% compared with 63,000 in January 2023 and also below the 64,000 in December. The BLS January report is preliminary and subject to revision.

U.S. job openings were an estimated 8.863 million in January, down 15% compared with 10.425 million in January 2023. U.S. new hires in January were 5.687 million, down 10.8% compared with 6.374 million in January 2023.

The largest increases in job openings between December 2023 and January were in New York (+82,000), Maryland (+50,000), and Oregon (+41,000). The largest decreases were in Texas (-62,000), Colorado (-34,000), and Michigan (-24,000). The largest increases in hires were in Pennsylvania (+57,000), North Carolina (+28,000), and Oregon (+19,000). The decreases were in Florida (-94,000), Texas (-64,000), and Arkansas (-10,000).

Arkansas had 14,000 layoffs in January, down 12.5% compared with January 2023, and unchanged from December.

The decreases in the layoffs and discharges between December 2023 and January were in Indiana and Ohio (-16,000 each) and in Alaska (-3,000). The increases were in Oregon (+8,000) and Delaware (+3,000).

Arkansas’ jobless rate rose to 3.7% in January from 3.4% in January 2023 even with year-over-year employment gains in Education and Health Services and the Construction sectors., according to a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report posted March 11. Arkansans without jobs in January totaled 50,782, slightly higher than the 50,736 in December, and up 24.1% compared with the 40,907 in January 2023.