The number of job openings decreased to 5.5 million on the last business day of May, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Hires and separations were both little changed at 5.0 million. Within separations, the quits rate was 2.0 percent and the layoffs and discharges rate was 1.2 percent. This release includes estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the nonfarm sector by industry and by four geographic regions. Job Openings Job Openings decreased in May by 345,000 to 5.5 million. The prior 3-month average change in job openings was +80,000.