Americans quit their jobs in record numbers in September, the Labor Department said Friday in its Job Openings and Labor Turnover report.
Just over 4.4 million people quit, an increase of 164,000 from the prior record in August. The dynamic has been dubbed the Great Resignation.
Workers who voluntarily leave their jobs are generally ineligible for unemployment benefits. There are some exceptions for workers who have good cause, and states may interpret the rules differently.
Americans are quitting their jobs in record numbers. However, they likely won’t qualify for unemployment benefits.
Just over 4.4 million people quit in September, an increase of 164,000 from the prior record in August, the Labor Department said Friday.
The quits rate also jumped to 3%, another all-time high. (This measures the number of quits during the month as a percent of total employment.)
The “Great Resignation” may be attributable to many things — pandemic burnout, near-record job openings, higher pay, more workplace flexibility, or a reimagining of one’s career.
Whatever the reason, people who quit their jobs typically can’t rely on unemployment benefits as a financial buffer during their career transition.
