Payroll and HR numbers circulate widely, but most roundups lean on vendor surveys with no clear methodology. This page uses U.S. primary sources instead: the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), SHRM's benchmarking research, Gallup, and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE).
Every figure below links to its source, with the data vintage noted. Where a widely quoted number could not be traced to a primary report, it is left out.
Key Payroll and HR Statistics at a Glance
- U.S. employers averaged 7.1 million monthly job openings in 2025, down from the prior year (BLS JOLTS).
- Workers quit 38.0 million jobs in 2025, a quits rate of 2.0% (BLS JOLTS).
- Quits made up 60.6% of all separations; layoffs and discharges made up 33.8% (BLS JOLTS).
- Median job tenure is 4.1 years as of January 2026, up from 3.9 years in 2024 (BLS).
- 20.6% of workers have been with their current employer for one year or less (BLS, January 2026).
- The median time to fill a nonexecutive role is 39 days (SHRM, 2026).
- More than 2 in 3 organizations struggled to fill open positions in 2026 (SHRM, 2026).
- Replacing an employee costs an estimated one-half to two times their annual salary (Gallup, 2019).
- Payroll fraud schemes had a median loss of about $50,000 per case (ACFE, 2024 report).
Employment and the Labor Market
The U.S. labor market appears to have cooled through 2025. According to the BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), job openings, hires, and quits all fell over the year, while layoffs and discharges rose.
Openings averaged 7.1 million a month, down 571,000 from 2024. Hires fell by 1.5 million to 63.0 million, and quits dropped by 1.3 million, which may reflect workers becoming more cautious about changing jobs.
| Measure | 2025 total | 2025 rate | Change from 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Job openings (monthly average) | 7.1 million | 4.3% | Down 571,000 |
| Hires | 63.0 million | 3.3% | Down 1.5 million |
| Total separations | 62.8 million | 3.3% | Down 251,000 |
| Quits | 38.0 million | 2.0% | Down 1.3 million |
| Layoffs and discharges | 21.2 million | 1.1% | Up 1.2 million |
For broader context on the businesses behind these numbers, see FinStackk's companion research page, Small Business Statistics (https://www.finstackk.com/research/small-business-statistics).
Employee Turnover and Retention
Turnover is still the dominant reason jobs end. Quits accounted for 60.6% of all separations in 2025, far ahead of layoffs and discharges at 33.8%, per BLS JOLTS.
Time in each job ticked up in the latest reading. The BLS Employee Tenure survey put median tenure at 4.1 years in January 2026, up from 3.9 years in January 2024, with 20.6% of workers in their job for a year or less.
Tenure rises sharply with age. Workers aged 55 to 64 had a median tenure of 9.6 years, more than three times the 3.0 years for workers aged 25 to 34.
That churn is expensive. In a widely cited 2019 analysis, Gallup estimated that replacing a single employee costs between one-half and two times that person's annual salary, a figure it describes as conservative. Gallup also put the total annual cost of voluntary turnover to U.S. businesses at roughly $1 trillion, though that headline estimate is based on earlier turnover rates and is best read as an order-of-magnitude figure.
Hiring and Recruitment
Hiring stayed difficult in 2026 even as the market appears to have cooled. SHRM's 2026 recruiting benchmarking, drawn from more than 4,600 organizations, found that over 2 in 3 organizations reported struggling to fill open positions.
On the nonexecutive side, the median time to fill a role decreased to 39 calendar days, while time to fill for executive roles held steady from the prior year.
Costs moved unevenly. SHRM reported that cost per hire rose for executive positions while nonexecutive costs stayed relatively stable, and that the median organization filled 97% of nonexecutive positions externally rather than through internal moves.
Payroll Operations, Cost, and Compliance
Payroll can be one of the largest and most heavily regulated costs a business carries, which makes accuracy and compliance more than an administrative concern.
Fraud is one measurable risk. The ACFE Occupational Fraud 2026 report found a median loss of $104,000 across all occupational fraud cases, based on 2,402 cases worldwide. Its 2024 report put the median loss for payroll-specific fraud schemes at about $50,000.
Compliance is the other recurring exposure. Running payroll creates ongoing federal and state obligations. These include employment tax deposits and filings covered in the IRS employment tax guidance, along with correct worker classification and state new-hire reporting requirements. Missed deposits and worker misclassification can trigger penalties, so businesses generally treat payroll compliance as a standing process rather than a once-a-year task.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many people quit their jobs in 2025?
U.S. workers quit 38.0 million jobs in 2025, a quits rate of 2.0%, down 1.3 million from 2024, according to BLS JOLTS. Quits made up 60.6% of all separations.
What is the average employee tenure in the U.S.?
Median tenure with the current employer was 4.1 years in January 2026, up from 3.9 years in 2024, per the BLS Employee Tenure survey. About 20.6% of workers had been in their job for a year or less.
How long does it take to fill a job?
The median time to fill a nonexecutive role was 39 calendar days in 2026, according to SHRM's recruiting benchmarking. SHRM reported that time to fill for executive roles was unchanged from the prior year.
How much does employee turnover cost?
Gallup estimates that replacing an employee costs between one-half and two times that person's annual salary, before accounting for harder-to-measure effects like lost knowledge and team morale.
How common is payroll fraud?
The ACFE's 2024 Report to the Nations put the median loss for payroll fraud schemes at about $50,000 per case. The ACFE's latest overall figure, from its Occupational Fraud 2026 report, is a $104,000 median loss across all occupational fraud.
What is the U.S. quit rate compared with the layoff rate?
In 2025, quits were 60.6% of all separations and layoffs and discharges were 33.8%, per BLS JOLTS. The annual quits rate was 2.0% and the layoffs and discharges rate was 1.1%.
Sources and Methodology
This page uses primary U.S. government data, established benchmarking research, and recognized industry reports. Vendor marketing figures without a traceable methodology are excluded. Data vintages are noted because labor-market and benchmarking figures are revised regularly.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS). Openings, hires, separations, quits, and layoffs; annual 2025 figures from the archived release.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Employee Tenure. Median tenure and tenure by age (January 2026 survey).
- SHRM: Recruiting Benchmarking (2026). Time to fill, hiring difficulty, and cost-per-hire direction, from more than 4,600 organizations.
- Gallup: This Fixable Problem Costs U.S. Businesses $1 Trillion (2019). Turnover replacement-cost estimates.
- Association of Certified Fraud Examiners: Occupational Fraud 2026, Report to the Nations (overall median loss), with the payroll-scheme breakdown from the 2024 report.
- IRS: Understanding Employment Taxes. Federal payroll tax obligations.
Methodology note: BLS JOLTS and Employee Tenure figures come from federal surveys. SHRM benchmarking and the ACFE Report to the Nations are survey-based industry reports, so their figures reflect participating organizations and reported cases rather than a full census. Gallup's turnover estimates are longstanding and based on earlier turnover rates.
How FinStackk Helps
Payroll and hiring create continuous U.S. tax and compliance obligations that sit alongside whatever payroll system a business already runs. FinStackk is built to be that compliance and operations layer, not a replacement for a payroll engine.
It complements payroll platforms by managing payroll-related compliance, registrations, notices, and operational workflows for businesses with U.S. operations. Relevant modules include:
- Fin-Tax for business tax filings and a compliance calendar.
- Complyy for multi-jurisdiction compliance tracking across states.
- Fin-Hire for payroll processing, for businesses that want it in one place.
Update History
- October 2026: Initial publication. Figures reflect BLS JOLTS annual 2025 data, the BLS January 2026 Employee Tenure survey, SHRM 2026 recruiting benchmarking, Gallup turnover research (2019), and the ACFE Occupational Fraud 2026 report, with the payroll-scheme figure from the ACFE 2024 report.