Resources/Updated Nov 12, 2026
Staffing industry pulse: temp jobs, openings and staffing firm revenue
The live numbers behind the staffing market in one place: temporary help jobs, job openings, quits, job postings and the revenue of listed staffing firms. Pulled from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Indeed Hiring Lab and SEC filings, and updated as each one publishes.
- 2.53Mtemp help jobs, October 2026
- +3.0%temp help jobs vs a year earlier
- 7.52Mjob openings, September 2026
- 0.94unemployed people per job opening
For staffing firms
Temp help jobs move before the wider job market, so they are the first number staffing owners watch. Use these to frame client calls and plan your desk.
Key staffing market numbers
Temp help jobs, October 2026
2.53M
+3.0% (+74K) vs a year earlier
Job openings, September 2026
7.52M
+4.9% (+354K) vs a year earlier
Indeed job postings index, Nov 6
104.6
+4.0% vs a year earlier
Quits rate, September 2026
2.1%
+0.2 pts vs a year earlier
What moved
- Temp help jobs rose by 19,000 in October 2026 to 2.53M.
- Job openings rose to 7.52M in September 2026, from 7.19M the month before.
- The quits rate was 2.1% in September 2026, against 1.9% a year earlier. More quits means more people open to a move.
- Job postings on Indeed were 4.6% above their February 2020 level on Nov 6, up 0.4% in 30 days.
Is the market heating up or cooling?
Green bars are months when staffing firms added temp workers, red bars are months they cut. When the openings line sits above the unemployed line, there are more open jobs than people looking, and candidates are harder to find.
View the numbers
| Month | Change in jobs |
|---|---|
| Oct 2026 | +19K |
| Sep 2026 | −6K |
| Aug 2026 | +16K |
| Jul 2026 | −10K |
| Jun 2026 | +17K |
| May 2026 | +200 |
| Apr 2026 | +11K |
| Mar 2026 | +8K |
| Feb 2026 | +2K |
| Jan 2026 | +19K |
| Dec 2025 | −14K |
| Nov 2025 | +14K |
| Oct 2025 | −20K |
| Sep 2025 | −12K |
| Aug 2025 | −11K |
| Jul 2025 | −10K |
| Jun 2025 | −9K |
| May 2025 | −14K |
| Apr 2025 | −800 |
| Mar 2025 | −5K |
| Feb 2025 | −6K |
| Jan 2025 | −3K |
| Dec 2024 | −8K |
| Nov 2024 | +2K |
View the numbers
| Month | Job openings | Unemployed people |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2026 | 7.52M | 7.11M |
| Aug 2026 | 7.19M | 7.03M |
| Jul 2026 | 7.34M | 6.92M |
| Jun 2026 | 7.18M | 7.09M |
| May 2026 | 7.54M | 7.31M |
| Apr 2026 | 7.59M | 7.37M |
| Mar 2026 | 6.89M | 7.24M |
| Feb 2026 | 6.92M | 7.57M |
| Jan 2026 | 7.24M | 7.37M |
| Dec 2025 | 6.55M | 7.50M |
| Nov 2025 | 6.85M | 7.78M |
| Sep 2025 | 7.17M | 7.61M |
| Aug 2025 | 6.92M | 7.38M |
| Jul 2025 | 7.09M | 7.27M |
| Jun 2025 | 7.20M | 7.05M |
| May 2025 | 7.31M | 7.25M |
| Apr 2025 | 7.10M | 7.16M |
| Mar 2025 | 6.95M | 7.13M |
| Feb 2025 | 7.24M | 7.10M |
| Jan 2025 | 7.43M | 6.87M |
| Dec 2024 | 7.30M | 6.92M |
| Nov 2024 | 7.57M | 7.09M |
| Oct 2024 | 7.38M | 6.95M |
| Sep 2024 | 6.94M | 6.85M |
Two years of the numbers staffing firms watch
View the numbers
| Month | Value |
|---|---|
| Oct 2026 | 2.53M |
| Sep 2026 | 2.51M |
| Aug 2026 | 2.51M |
| Jul 2026 | 2.50M |
| Jun 2026 | 2.51M |
| May 2026 | 2.49M |
| Apr 2026 | 2.49M |
| Mar 2026 | 2.48M |
| Feb 2026 | 2.47M |
| Jan 2026 | 2.47M |
| Dec 2025 | 2.45M |
| Nov 2025 | 2.47M |
| Oct 2025 | 2.45M |
| Sep 2025 | 2.47M |
| Aug 2025 | 2.48M |
| Jul 2025 | 2.49M |
| Jun 2025 | 2.50M |
| May 2025 | 2.51M |
| Apr 2025 | 2.53M |
| Mar 2025 | 2.53M |
| Feb 2025 | 2.53M |
| Jan 2025 | 2.54M |
| Dec 2024 | 2.54M |
| Nov 2024 | 2.55M |
| Oct 2024 | 2.55M |
View the numbers
| Month | Value |
|---|---|
| Sep 2026 | 7.52M |
| Aug 2026 | 7.19M |
| Jul 2026 | 7.34M |
| Jun 2026 | 7.18M |
| May 2026 | 7.54M |
| Apr 2026 | 7.59M |
| Mar 2026 | 6.89M |
| Feb 2026 | 6.92M |
| Jan 2026 | 7.24M |
| Dec 2025 | 6.55M |
| Nov 2025 | 6.85M |
| Oct 2025 | 7.17M |
| Sep 2025 | 7.17M |
| Aug 2025 | 6.92M |
| Jul 2025 | 7.09M |
| Jun 2025 | 7.20M |
| May 2025 | 7.31M |
| Apr 2025 | 7.10M |
| Mar 2025 | 6.95M |
| Feb 2025 | 7.24M |
| Jan 2025 | 7.43M |
| Dec 2024 | 7.30M |
| Nov 2024 | 7.57M |
| Oct 2024 | 7.38M |
| Sep 2024 | 6.94M |
View the numbers
| Month | Value |
|---|---|
| Nov 6, 2026 | 104.6 |
| Nov 2026 | 103.8 |
| Oct 2026 | 103.8 |
| Sep 2026 | 101.9 |
| Aug 2026 | 102.0 |
| Jul 2026 | 101.0 |
| Jun 2026 | 100.1 |
| May 2026 | 102.5 |
| Apr 2026 | 102.2 |
| Mar 2026 | 105.4 |
| Feb 2026 | 103.6 |
| Jan 2026 | 103.1 |
| Dec 2025 | 102.2 |
| Nov 2025 | 100.4 |
| Oct 2025 | 101.3 |
| Sep 2025 | 103.9 |
| Aug 2025 | 104.8 |
| Jul 2025 | 104.8 |
| Jun 2025 | 105.5 |
| May 2025 | 105.9 |
| Apr 2025 | 106.8 |
| Mar 2025 | 108.8 |
| Feb 2025 | 109.5 |
| Jan 2025 | 110.7 |
| Dec 2024 | 110.3 |
View the numbers
| Month | Value |
|---|---|
| Sep 2026 | 2.10% |
| Aug 2026 | 1.90% |
| Jul 2026 | 1.90% |
| Jun 2026 | 2.00% |
| May 2026 | 2.00% |
| Apr 2026 | 1.90% |
| Mar 2026 | 2.00% |
| Feb 2026 | 1.90% |
| Jan 2026 | 2.00% |
| Dec 2025 | 2.00% |
| Nov 2025 | 2.00% |
| Oct 2025 | 1.90% |
| Sep 2025 | 1.90% |
| Aug 2025 | 2.00% |
| Jul 2025 | 2.00% |
| Jun 2025 | 2.10% |
| May 2025 | 2.10% |
| Apr 2025 | 2.00% |
| Mar 2025 | 2.20% |
| Feb 2025 | 2.00% |
| Jan 2025 | 2.00% |
| Dec 2024 | 1.90% |
| Nov 2024 | 1.90% |
| Oct 2024 | 2.00% |
| Sep 2024 | 2.00% |
The latest labor market numbers
| Measure | Month | Latest | vs month before | vs year before |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Temporary help services jobs | Oct 2026 (P) | 2.53M | +0.7% (+19K) | +3.0% (+74K) |
| Employment services jobs (staffing, PEOs, placement) | Oct 2026 (P) | 3.23M | +0.6% (+20K) | +2.9% (+91K) |
| Total nonfarm payroll jobs | Oct 2026 (P) | 159.29M | +0.1% (+165K) | +0.6% (+885K) |
| Job openings, all industries (JOLTS) | Sep 2026 (P) | 7.52M | +4.6% (+333K) | +4.9% (+354K) |
| Job openings, professional and business services | Sep 2026 (P) | 1.31M | +8.8% (+106K) | +3.4% (+43K) |
| Hires rate | Sep 2026 (P) | 3.4% | +0.1 pts | +0.1 pts |
| Quits rate | Sep 2026 (P) | 2.1% | +0.2 pts | +0.2 pts |
| Layoffs and discharges rate | Sep 2026 (P) | 1.0% | −0.1 pts | −0.1 pts |
| Unemployment rate | Oct 2026 | 4.1% | −0.1 pts | – |
| Unemployed people | Oct 2026 | 7.07M | −0.6% (−41K) | – |
| Average hourly earnings, private sector | Oct 2026 (P) | $38.00 | +0.4% | +3.1% |
| Unemployed people per job opening | Sep 2026 | 0.94 | Below 1 means more openings than people looking. | |
Jobs and openings are in thousands (K) or millions (M), seasonally adjusted. Green is better for workers and for hiring demand, red is worse. (P) marks a preliminary figure the BLS will revise. A dash means the BLS has no figure for that month: the household survey behind the unemployment numbers was not run in October 2025 during the federal government shutdown. JOLTS runs about a month behind the jobs report.
Listed staffing firms: latest quarterly revenue
7 of 10 listed staffing firms reported more revenue than in the same quarter a year earlier. Revenue as reported to the SEC for the latest quarter each firm has filed.
Revenue growth on the same quarter a year earlier
- TrueBlue+20.7%
- AMN Healthcare+13.0%
- Kforce+7.5%
- Korn Ferry+6.9%
- ManpowerGroup+4.4%
- HireQuest+4.1%
- Robert Half+0.4%
- Kelly Services−0.8%
- BGSF−6.6%
- Mastech Digital−13.4%
Each firm is compared on its own latest quarter, and quarter end dates differ. See the table for each one.
| Company | Quarter ended | Revenue | vs same quarter a year earlier | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ManpowerGroup MAN | Sep 30, 2026 | $4.84B | +4.4% | SEC filings for ManpowerGroup (opens in a new tab) |
| Robert Half RHI | Sep 30, 2026 | $1.36B | +0.4% | SEC filings for Robert Half (opens in a new tab) |
| Kelly Services KELYA | Sep 27, 2026 | $927.2M | −0.8% | SEC filings for Kelly Services (opens in a new tab) |
| Korn Ferry KFY | Jul 31, 2026 | $764.6M | +6.9% | SEC filings for Korn Ferry (opens in a new tab) |
| AMN Healthcare AMN | Sep 30, 2026 | $717.3M | +13.0% | SEC filings for AMN Healthcare (opens in a new tab) |
| TrueBlue TBI | Sep 27, 2026 | $520.7M | +20.7% | SEC filings for TrueBlue (opens in a new tab) |
| Kforce KFRC | Sep 30, 2026 | $357.8M | +7.5% | SEC filings for Kforce (opens in a new tab) |
| Mastech Digital MHH | Sep 30, 2026 | $42.0M | −13.4% | SEC filings for Mastech Digital (opens in a new tab) |
| BGSF BGSF | Sep 27, 2026 | $25.1M | −6.6% | SEC filings for BGSF (opens in a new tab) |
| HireQuest HQI | Jun 30, 2026 | $7.6M | +4.1% | SEC filings for HireQuest (opens in a new tab) |
Not shown: ASGN, Cross Country Healthcare, Heidrick & Struggles. The SEC data has no quarterly revenue from them in the last eight months, for example after a sale or a change in how they report.
Job boards and hiring platforms
- ZipRecruiter+8.2%
- DHI Group (Dice)+0.4%
- Upwork−8.0%
| Company | Quarter ended | Revenue | vs same quarter a year earlier | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upwork UPWK | Sep 30, 2026 | $185.6M | −8.0% | SEC filings for Upwork (opens in a new tab) |
| ZipRecruiter ZIP | Sep 30, 2026 | $124.4M | +8.2% | SEC filings for ZipRecruiter (opens in a new tab) |
| DHI Group (Dice) DHX | Sep 30, 2026 | $32.2M | +0.4% | SEC filings for DHI Group (Dice) (opens in a new tab) |
Where a firm reports only a full year for its fourth quarter, the quarter is the year minus the first three quarters.
Staffing market questions
Why do staffing firms watch temp help jobs?
Companies add temporary workers before they hire permanent staff and cut them first when demand slows, so temporary help services employment tends to turn before the wider job market. A run of monthly declines has often come before a broader hiring slowdown.
What is JOLTS?
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It counts job openings, hires, quits and layoffs each month, about a month after the jobs report for the same month.
What does unemployed people per job opening mean?
It divides the number of unemployed people by the number of job openings in the same month. Below 1 there are more openings than people looking, which makes candidates harder to find and more likely to have options.
Where do these numbers come from?
Jobs, openings, quits and pay come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics public data API. Job postings come from the Indeed Hiring Lab job postings index. Company revenue comes from the quarterly and annual reports each firm files with the SEC.
How often is this page updated?
We check every source each day. The BLS jobs numbers come out monthly, usually on the first Friday, and JOLTS about a month later. Indeed updates its index daily, and staffing firms report every quarter.
Sources: BLS Current Employment Statistics, BLS JOLTS, BLS Current Population Survey, Indeed Hiring Lab and SEC EDGAR. See also the monthly Staffing Market Brief, 35 labor market trackers, the layoffs tracker and WARN notices. Free to cite with credit to Work Insiders.