UT sociologist Jennifer Glass on why so many people are leaving their jobs

A mismatch between available workers and job openings is plaguing the labor market as potential employees leave cities or industries where businesses need them most.

No matter what you call it, hiring is difficult right now and seems to be especially difficult in the food and beverage service industry. Anecdotes abound about understaffed restaurants struggling to hire, workers pivoting from food service to new industries, and new incentives being offered to entice workers. Whether you choose to call it a labor shortage or a great realignment of labor, changes happening in the industry today will reverberate for years to come.

The US economy added 850,000 jobs in June, a noticeable pickup from the average of 546,000 jobs over the previous three months and much faster than the pace in the three months before that. This still leaves the economy 9 million jobs short of its trend.

June 2021

American workers are quitting their jobs more than any other time in the past two decades.

#JOLTS this week showed quits jumping to a record high. Some of these quits may have simply been delayed from earlier in the pandemic. There were ~5.1m "missing quits" during the pandemic at their peak in Feb 2021. Raises the question: how many more delayed quits may be coming? https://t.co/4fm91zWyui

With new opportunities and a different perspective as the pandemic eases, workers are choosing to leave their jobs in record numbers.

Workers want more pay, better conditions or to be their own boss — and for now, they're getting what they want.