US job openings slipped in December, a government report showed on Tuesday, but a decline in layoffs supported views of a gradual labour market recovery. Job openings, a measure of labour demand, eased 139,000 to a seasonally adjusted 3.1 million, the Labour Department said in its monthly Job Openings and Labour Turnover Survey.
The job openings rate - a gauge of how many jobs were still open at the end of the month - fell to 2.3 percent from 2.4 percent in November. Job openings have risen about 31 percent from their record low in July 2009. Layoffs and discharges fell to 1.84 million from 1.85 million in November, reflecting declines in the private sector. Government layoffs and discharges increased in December.
The improvement in the labour market is lagging the broader economic recovery, which is gaining momentum. Government data on Friday showed nonfarm payrolls increased a modest 36,000 in January. The decline in job openings in December was led by the private sector, where openings fell sharply in construction and manufacturing. Job openings in government increased, despite the rise in layoffs.