The number of Americans leaving their jobs hit another all-time high in November as 4.5 million quit, and experts told The New York Times that these workers are largely those leaving low-paying jobs.
''This Great Resignation story is really more about lower-wage workers finding new opportunities in a reopening labor market and seizing them,'' Nick Bunker, director of economic research at Indeed Hiring Lab, told the Times.
The 4.5 million in November exceeded the 4.2 million in October, the most in the two decades the Department of Labor has kept track of that data point.
Those switching jobs are getting faster pay increases than those staying in their jobs, according to Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta data.
''Pretty much the only group of people who say they're better off now than they were a year ago are people who've gotten a pay raise that matches or beats inflation,'' Momentive searcher Laura Wronski told the Times.
The consumer price index rose 6.8% in November to a near four-decade high, while average hourly earnings rose 4.8%, according to the report.
Leisure and hospitality workers saw a 12.3% hourly wage increase in November.
''The cost of things rose, our rent increased, while our income decreased,'' bar worker Somer Welch, who lost her job during the pandemic when her employer closed down, told the Times.
This job market is ripe for those seeking greener pastures, Glassdoor senior economist Daniel Zhao told the Times.
''At a time when employers are competing and raising wages so quickly, if you're not switching jobs right now, then you can get left behind by the market,'' Zhao added.
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