Job openings across the U.S. grew by nearly 8% in August, the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows.
At the end of the month, there were 9.6 million open jobs nationwide. Though job openings are down from peaks in early 2022, they remain much higher than in any previous decade in recent history. Compared to August 2019, for example, the most recent monthly job openings were up by over 2.4 million.
The national job openings rate was 5.8% in August—meaning around 6 in 100 of all jobs in the economy are unfilled positions. Industries such as health care and hospitality are experiencing even higher job-opening rates as they struggle to recruit and retain employees.
Labor market trends vary by locale. To get a more complete view, Stacker used Bureau of Labor Statistics data to rank states by their job opening rates in August, using the number of job openings as a tiebreaker when needed. BLS calculates job opening rates as the number of job openings per total jobs—filled or open—in a state. August estimates are preliminary.
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#51. New Jersey
– Job opening rate: 4.6%
– Number of job openings: 210,000
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#50. Washington D.C.
– Job opening rate: 4.8%
– Number of job openings: 39,000
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#49. New York
– Job opening rate: 4.8%
– Number of job openings: 487,000
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#48. Indiana
– Job opening rate: 5.0%
– Number of job openings: 171,000
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#47. Washington
– Job opening rate: 5.1%
– Number of job openings: 195,000
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#46. Michigan
– Job opening rate: 5.1%
– Number of job openings: 239,000
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#45. California
– Job opening rate: 5.3%
– Number of job openings: 1.0 million
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#44. Hawaii
– Job opening rate: 5.4%
– Number of job openings: 36,000
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#43. Connecticut
– Job opening rate: 5.4%
– Number of job openings: 96,000
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#42. Iowa
– Job opening rate: 5.5%
– Number of job openings: 92,000
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#41. Texas
– Job opening rate: 5.5%
– Number of job openings: 809,000
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#40. Vermont
– Job opening rate: 5.6%
– Number of job openings: 18,000
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#39. Oregon
– Job opening rate: 5.6%
– Number of job openings: 119,000
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#38. Nebraska
– Job opening rate: 5.7%
– Number of job openings: 63,000
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#37. Pennsylvania
– Job opening rate: 5.7%
– Number of job openings: 370,000
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#36. Maine
– Job opening rate: 5.8%
– Number of job openings: 40,000
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#35. New Hampshire
– Job opening rate: 5.8%
– Number of job openings: 43,000
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#34. Missouri
– Job opening rate: 5.8%
– Number of job openings: 184,000
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#33. Wisconsin
– Job opening rate: 5.8%
– Number of job openings: 187,000
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#32. Rhode Island
– Job opening rate: 5.9%
– Number of job openings: 31,000
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#31. Kansas
– Job opening rate: 5.9%
– Number of job openings: 90,000
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#30. Kentucky
– Job opening rate: 5.9%
– Number of job openings: 126,000
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#29. Ohio
– Job opening rate: 5.9%
– Number of job openings: 356,000
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#28. Florida
– Job opening rate: 5.9%
– Number of job openings: 612,000
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#27. North Dakota
– Job opening rate: 6.0%
– Number of job openings: 28,000
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#26. Alabama
– Job opening rate: 6.0%
– Number of job openings: 138,000
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#25. Arizona
– Job opening rate: 6.0%
– Number of job openings: 201,000
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#24. Wyoming
– Job opening rate: 6.1%
– Number of job openings: 19,000
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#23. South Dakota
– Job opening rate: 6.1%
– Number of job openings: 30,000
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#22. Massachusetts
– Job opening rate: 6.1%
– Number of job openings: 246,000
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#21. Arkansas
– Job opening rate: 6.2%
– Number of job openings: 91,000
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#20. Nevada
– Job opening rate: 6.2%
– Number of job openings: 104,000
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#19. Maryland
– Job opening rate: 6.2%
– Number of job openings: 183,000
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#18. Virginia
– Job opening rate: 6.2%
– Number of job openings: 274,000
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#17. Idaho
– Job opening rate: 6.3%
– Number of job openings: 57,000
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#16. Oklahoma
– Job opening rate: 6.3%
– Number of job openings: 116,000
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#15. Tennessee
– Job opening rate: 6.3%
– Number of job openings: 225,000
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#14. Illinois
– Job opening rate: 6.3%
– Number of job openings: 410,000
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#13. Delaware
– Job opening rate: 6.4%
– Number of job openings: 33,000
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#12. Colorado
– Job opening rate: 6.5%
– Number of job openings: 204,000
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#11. North Carolina
– Job opening rate: 6.5%
– Number of job openings: 343,000
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#10. Montana
– Job opening rate: 6.6%
– Number of job openings: 37,000
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#9. Mississippi
– Job opening rate: 6.6%
– Number of job openings: 83,000
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#8. Louisiana
– Job opening rate: 6.6%
– Number of job openings: 139,000
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#7. Georgia
– Job opening rate: 6.6%
– Number of job openings: 350,000
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#6. Minnesota
– Job opening rate: 6.7%
– Number of job openings: 214,000
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#5. New Mexico
– Job opening rate: 6.8%
– Number of job openings: 63,000
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#4. West Virginia
– Job opening rate: 7.1%
– Number of job openings: 54,000
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#3. Utah
– Job opening rate: 7.1%
– Number of job openings: 133,000
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#2. South Carolina
– Job opening rate: 7.1%
– Number of job openings: 175,000
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#1. Alaska
– Job opening rate: 10.6%
– Number of job openings: 39,000
Data reporting by Paxtyn Merten.
Stacker
Stacker is a news organization that produces and distributes data journalism to the world’s news organizations. Founded in 2017, Stacker combines data analysis with rich editorial context, drawing on authoritative sources and subject matter experts to drive storytelling. This article has been republished pursuant to a CC BY-NC 4.0 License.