The U.S. Dept of Labor recently released data that underscores the challenges facing businesses when it comes to worker retention.
Worker shortages have gotten so severe, employers appear to be actively avoiding terminating existing employees.
The DOL reports that the number of workers being fired or laid off has hit the lowest point on record.
Between 2000 and 2017, the number of open jobs has always been lower than the number of job seekers, but that started to shift in 2018.
The most recent report says there are now a record 1.92 openings for each unemployed person seeking work.
As an added challenge, there are 600,000 fewer people in the workforce now than there were pre-pandemic.
Some blame lingering fear of health risks, childcare challenges and the heavy death toll from COVID-19 as factors in why the workforce has shrunk.
The result is unprecedented job security, as CNN Business concludes that “employers are desperate to hang on to the workers they have.”
