New labor data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is drawing renewed attention after job openings surged by 400,000 last month, reaching nearly 7 million unfilled positions across the country.

Economist Peter St Onge addressed the figures, saying, “Job openings jumped 400,000 last month, which has annualized 5 million new jobs, yearning for a worker.” He added, “So much for the collapsing job market.”

The increase follows a prior BLS report showing a drop of 92,000 jobs, a contrast St Onge highlighted.

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“It’s odd,” he said, “since just last month, the BLS reported a catastrophic drop of 92,000 jobs.”

The data comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, which tracks openings, hires, quits, and layoffs.

St Onge noted the broader context of the report, saying, “Last week, the notorious Bureau of Labor Statistics released their so called jolts numbers job openings and labor turnover.”

Hiring saw a modest increase, while layoffs declined.

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“Hires rose a smidge about 20,000,” St Onge said, adding that layoffs “actually fell according to the BLS, by 35,000.”

The report also showed an increase in the quit rate, a measure often tied to worker confidence.

St Onge explained, “The all important quit rate actually rose.”

He added, “This is good, because if more people quit their jobs, it means they think jobs are easy to find.”

Sector trends showed a divergence between types of work.

“Quit rates are highest in blue collar jobs like construction and trades,” St Onge said, adding that they are “worst in high pay white collar jobs.”

He said, “It’s helping blue collars, and it’s gutting the cubicle jobs.”

Breaking down the rise in openings, several industries saw notable gains.

Finance and insurance recorded an increase of 170,000 openings. St Onge said the sector “surged 170,000 openings on the month,” noting, “They almost doubled openings.”

He attributed the increase to broader financial pressures, saying, “Financial stress creates finance jobs.” He pointed to roles tied to restructuring, risk analysis, and handling defaults.

Retail, trade, and transportation also posted gains, with about 130,000 additional openings.

“The next biggest jump was retail, trade and transportation openings jumped 130,000,” St Onge said.

He added, “The reason here is the tariffs,” explaining that companies are restocking after reducing inventories.

Leisure and hospitality also saw increases, though employment in the sector remains below pre-pandemic levels.

“This actually never recovered from covid,” St Onge said, noting that openings are still significantly lower than in 2019. He added, “Restaurants alone employ 12 million Americans.”

He also pointed out that these jobs remain less exposed to automation.

“These jobs are immune to AI,” he said, adding, “It’ll be a while before AI can clean your hotel room or serve that drink.”

Not all sectors experienced growth. Professional and business services saw the largest decline, dropping by 200,000 openings in the month.

St Onge said, “The biggest drop in openings was professional and business services.” He added that these roles “collapse by 200,000 on the month.”

He tied the decline to technological changes, stating, “This is ground zero for AI, which is replacing consultants, marketing and corporate services.”

Looking ahead, St Onge pointed to potential risks to the labor market.

“The main risk to jobs this year is the war,” he said, adding that oil prices could play a key role.

He concluded by describing a broader shift in employment trends, saying, “American jobs are splitting in two, with white collars hurting, but blue collars hashing in.”

He added, “We are growing jobs faster than Americans can fill them.”

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