U.S. Job Openings Rose in September in a Still-Tight Labor Market

Job openings peaked in March at 11.9 million and have since declined in four of the past six months through September. Openings remain elevated compared with a 7.2 million average in 2019 ahead of the pandemic.

Openings increased in most industries, but declined in manufacturing and wholesale trade, the Labor Department said.

The number of times workers quit their jobs fell slightly to 4.1 million. Layoffs edged down to 1.3 million, the department said, also below the 2019 average.

The September figures add to signs of a still-strong labor market that has cooled slightly compared with the first half of the year. Payroll growth slowed in August and September. Rapid pay and benefits increases leveled off in the third quarter compared with the prior quarter. Jobless claims in recent weeks rose above record-low levels reached in the spring.

The overall economy, while losing some momentum, is still growing. The Federal Reserve is expected to increase interest rates again this week as it attempts to cool the economy and tame inflation running near a four-decade high.

Jobs site Indeed estimated that openings totaled around 10 million in mid-October. Indeed data show that roles in the technology industry, such as in software development and marketing, saw postings decline the most this year through mid-October.

Companies in technology, real estate and financial services, which are sensitive to higher interest rates, such as

Meta Platforms Inc.,

Goldman Sachs and

Redfin Corp.

, have laid off workers or announced plans to trim staff this year.

“Some sectors are going through a period of retrenchment while others are still trying to bounce back from the pandemic,” said

Nick Bunker,

an economist at Indeed.

Employers in industries that typically struggle to hire enough workers, such as healthcare and education, will continue to add jobs but eventually slow the pace of hiring if the economy weakens further, said

Gregory Daco,

chief economist at consulting firm EY-Parthenon.

“There’s unlikely to be a sector in which employment will continue to grow very strongly. It may still see growth, but at a more subdued pace,” Mr. Daco said. He added that labor demand already has shown early signs of softening as companies anticipate a recession and try to limit labor costs without laying off workers. 

“There is increased caution and discretion among business executives in their talent-management decisions like more hiring freezes or perhaps making less of an effort to keep employees who might want to leave,” Mr. Daco said.

Ford Motor Co. asked white-collar employees deemed to be underperforming to choose between taking a severance package or improving performance. 

For some leisure and hospitality businesses, hiring remains difficult. Robert Lindo, vice president and director at Casino M8trix, a gambling and entertainment venue in San Jose, Calif., said his company of about 610 workers has about 80 job openings.

Mr. Lindo said it has been difficult to hire servers, bartenders, line cooks and security officers, causing the company to reduce the amount of food options it serves and open fewer tables. 

“There are just no responses to posts for some of the open positions, so wage increases are constantly in consideration,” Mr. Lindo said. He added that the high cost of living in the San Francisco Bay Area and the proximity of tech companies that typically pay their hourly workers more adds to his challenge in competing for workers. 

Write to Bryan Mena at bryan.mena@wsj.com

Job openings peaked in March at 11.9 million and have since declined in four of the past six months through September. Openings remain elevated compared with a 7.2 million average in 2019 ahead of the pandemic.

Openings increased in most industries, but declined in manufacturing and wholesale trade, the Labor Department said.

The number of times workers quit their jobs fell slightly to 4.1 million. Layoffs edged down to 1.3 million, the department said, also below the 2019 average.

The September figures add to signs of a still-strong labor market that has cooled slightly compared with the first half of the year. Payroll growth slowed in August and September. Rapid pay and benefits increases leveled off in the third quarter compared with the prior quarter. Jobless claims in recent weeks rose above record-low levels reached in the spring.

The overall economy, while losing some momentum, is still growing. The Federal Reserve is expected to increase interest rates again this week as it attempts to cool the economy and tame inflation running near a four-decade high.

Jobs site Indeed estimated that openings totaled around 10 million in mid-October. Indeed data show that roles in the technology industry, such as in software development and marketing, saw postings decline the most this year through mid-October.

Companies in technology, real estate and financial services, which are sensitive to higher interest rates, such as

Meta Platforms Inc.,

Goldman Sachs and

Redfin Corp.

, have laid off workers or announced plans to trim staff this year.

“Some sectors are going through a period of retrenchment while others are still trying to bounce back from the pandemic,” said

Nick Bunker,

an economist at Indeed.

Employers in industries that typically struggle to hire enough workers, such as healthcare and education, will continue to add jobs but eventually slow the pace of hiring if the economy weakens further, said

Gregory Daco,

chief economist at consulting firm EY-Parthenon.

“There’s unlikely to be a sector in which employment will continue to grow very strongly. It may still see growth, but at a more subdued pace,” Mr. Daco said. He added that labor demand already has shown early signs of softening as companies anticipate a recession and try to limit labor costs without laying off workers. 

“There is increased caution and discretion among business executives in their talent-management decisions like more hiring freezes or perhaps making less of an effort to keep employees who might want to leave,” Mr. Daco said.

Ford Motor Co. asked white-collar employees deemed to be underperforming to choose between taking a severance package or improving performance. 

For some leisure and hospitality businesses, hiring remains difficult. Robert Lindo, vice president and director at Casino M8trix, a gambling and entertainment venue in San Jose, Calif., said his company of about 610 workers has about 80 job openings.

Mr. Lindo said it has been difficult to hire servers, bartenders, line cooks and security officers, causing the company to reduce the amount of food options it serves and open fewer tables. 

“There are just no responses to posts for some of the open positions, so wage increases are constantly in consideration,” Mr. Lindo said. He added that the high cost of living in the San Francisco Bay Area and the proximity of tech companies that typically pay their hourly workers more adds to his challenge in competing for workers. 

Write to Bryan Mena at bryan.mena@wsj.com