Openings Rose, Hiring Fell 294,000: The July JOLTS Report Split the Labor Market

The July JOLTS report, released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on September 1 under release number USDL-26-1432, contains two labor markets wearing the same headline. Job openings rose 89,000 to 7.271 million and the openings rate held at 4.4 percent. Hiring in the same month fell 294,000 to 5.054 million, the hires rate dropping from 3.4 percent to 3.2 percent, the weakest hiring month since February. Firms are advertising more work and doing less of it, and that gap, not the openings number, is the story.

Key Takeaways July job openings rose 89,000 to 7.271 million, but June was revised down 177,000 to 7.182 million, the largest negative revision to the series since 2025. Hiring fell 294…