The state leads in job quitting so far this year. California has more hires and layoffs/discharges.
DALLAS — Last year Texas was the capital of hiring and quitting. According to seasonally adjusted state-level data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more people here than anywhere in the country started new jobs (about 7.6 million hires in Texas, compared to second place California with about 7.4 million) and more people here quit old jobs (just under 5 million quit in Texas compared to just over 4.4 million in second place California).
That was all at the end of a period of extraordinary turnover touched off by the pandemic that became known as the “Great Resignation.” It was the same sort of job market churn we saw the year before. But in 2022, California was the capital of new hires and quitters.
This year, though, the labor market is different. It is tighter, and people aren’t switching jobs as much. For 2024, we have labor turnover data at the state level that goes through August. It’s close, but so far, more people have been hired in California this year (about 4.1 million) than in Texas (almost 4 million).
California is also far outpacing Texas for the number of employees laid off or discharged in 2024 (almost 1.4 million). Not as many people here have been let go in Texas so far this year (just under 1 million).
However, Texans have quit better than everyone else in the country. Through August, more than 2.6 million Texans have said bye-bye to their bosses, putting this state in the lead to possibly get the ‘Quitters Cup’ trophy once again. California again comes in second with just under 2.4 million quitters thus far in 2024.
But it could be an interesting finish this year. Workers were surveyed by resumebuilder.com in mid-July about whether they plan to quit their jobs by the end of 2024.
Even in a tighter job market than we have seen in recent years, 28% of them were reportedly considering handing in their notice by the end of the year. The survey found workers under the age of 34 were more likely to say they’re quitting than older workers.
Takeaway for employers: If you are trying to keep your workers, among all age groups the top three reasons cited for contemplating a resignation were the old standby–better pay, followed by better benefits and then (my personal favorite) the current job is too stressful.
The survey also found some people considering quitting without a new job lined up. On that front, Zip Recruiter finds that for most of this year, the majority of job seekers have been landing a position in just a month or less.
They also report that the percentage of workers receiving a counteroffer from the employer they are leaving has been going up. Takeaway for employees: Maybe don’t burn that old bridge just yet, because perhaps the employer you are leaving might meet some of those common demands like better pay, better benefits, or possibly even a reduction in job stress!