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Quit, Discharge, and Layoff Rates

Tables/Charts:
Annual Quit Rate by Industry, 2008–2010

Monthly Quit Rate, 2008-2010

Annual Discharge and Layoff Rate by Industry, 2008–2010

Monthly Discharge and Layoff Rate, 2008–2010

Summary Points:


  • Almost one-fourth (24.6 percent) of all retail employees quit a job in 2010, well above the national average of 16.4 percent.

  • The retail industry faces the second-highest quit rate, behind only the leisure and hospitality industry, which includes restaurants and dining establishments.

  • Quit rates spike for retailers - as well as the rest of the economy - at the beginning of the year and at the end of each summer.

  • In 2010, the discharge and layoff rate for retailers (15.8 percent) was slightly lower than the overall U.S. rate of 16.4 percent.

  • Retailer's discharge and layoff rate declined from 19.4 percent in 2009 to 15.8 percent in 2010.

  • Discharges and layoffs are highest every year after the holiday season.


Annual Quit Rate* by Industry, 2008-2010
(NAICS Definitions, Percent of Total Employment)
       
  2008 2009 2010
All Industries 21.6% 15.7% 16.4%
Construction 21.8 14.3 15.5
Manufacturing 14.1 8.6 9.7
Retail Trade 31.0 23.2 24.6
Professional and Business Services 28.5 19.8 22.9
Education and Health Services 18.2 15.0 14.6
Leisure and Hospitality 47.7 33.5 32.9
Government 7.4 5.6 6.0
       
*Includes all employees who left voluntarily, excluding those that retire or transfer to other locations.
Note: Data are not adjusted for seasonal variations, holiday, and trading day differences.
Source: Derived from U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics data.


Monthly Quit Rate, Jan 2007-Dec 2009

Annual Discharge and Layoff Rate* by Industry, 2007-2009
(NAICS Definitions, Percent of Total Employment)
  2008 2009 2010
All Industries 17.4% 20.1% 16.4%
Construction 46.5 62.1 56.8
Manufacturing 16.6 24.1 14.3
Retail Trade 19.4 19.4 15.8
Professional and Business Services 27.5 29.2 24.6
Education and Health Services 10.5 11.1 10.3
Leisure and Hospitality 22.4 24.8 20.5
Government 5.2 7.1 9.3
       
* Includes involuntary separations initiated by the employer, such as layoffs, discharges resulting from an eliminated position, mergers, downsizing, or plant closings, and firings or other discharges for cause.
Note: Data are not adjusted for seasonal variations, holiday, and trading day differences.
Source: Derived from U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics data.



Monthly Discharge and Layoff Rate, 2007-2009


Retail Industry Indicators 2011 © NRF Foundation
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