Is the Great Resignation over?

(NEXSTAR) – Tucked into the latest U.S. jobs report, behind the headliner 9 million job openings listed in December 2023, was another figure. The number of Americans quitting their jobs dipped to the lowest level since January 2021, the federal government said Tuesday.

The number of Americans quitting is typically a sign of their confidence in their ability to find a better position. That confidence grew to a peak in late 2021 and early 2022, when quitting rates grew to a point never seen in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, which started in 2000. That period earned the nickname the Great Resignation.

But by the end of 2023, the confidence to cut and run appeared to be gone for most folks. The number of people quitting jobs had dropped back to pre-pandemic rates by October, Fortune reported.

Late 2023 and early 2024 have also seen mass layoffs, especially in the tech and retail sectors. Levi’s, Microsoft, REI, TikTok, Amazon, Riot Games and Google all announced recent job cuts.

Workers may see the abundant layoff announcements as a sign they should stay put.

“Candidates resign and job search when they feel optimistic about the market,” Laura Mazzullo, owner of recruiting firm East Side Staffing, told Yahoo Finance. When fear about the job market rises, they become more risk-averse.

Nela Richardson, ADP’s chief economist, likened it to a game of musical chairs in an interview with the New York Times. No one wants to take a chance just to be left standing without a chair to sit in.

“Everyone knows the music is about to stop,” she said. “That is going to lead people to stay put a bit longer.”

There has also been a slowdown in hiring, so workers looking to make a move may see fewer options out there. U.S. employers added 2.7 million jobs last year, down from 4.8 million in 2022 and a record 7.3 million in 2021.

The end of the Great Resignation may mean fewer quits, but the number of layoffs isn’t reaching recession levels either. Despite the wave of high-profile layoffs, the number of job cuts across the economy remains relatively low.

The unemployment rate has come in below 4% for 23 straight months, the longest such streak since the 1960s. And the number of people applying for unemployment benefits — a proxy for layoffs — has remained unusually low.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.