Five or six years ago, I attended a conference in D.C. on problems with economic measurement.  Of course, there was a great deal of focus on the monthly “jobs report” issued by Department of Labor, because Wall Street invariably obsesses about it.  One of the problems is a lack of agreement about who is really a part of the labor force and who is not — making any percentage of that number very suspect.

Increasingly, economists and Fed watchers are focusing on the JOLTS report, which stands for Job-Opening & Labor-Turnover.  The latest report supports the normal Jobs Report that the labor market is improving significantly.  Job openings are now almost at the high during the last expansion, before the global financial crisis.  This is a good sign.

Fed Head Yellen focuses on quits or “voluntary labor turnover” in particular.  You probably know the market for jobs in your skill set in your town better than anybody, and you won’t quit your job unless you’re confident you can get another.  Therefore, a higher number of jobs quit reflects a healthy job environment.  That number has been falling but seems to have finally stabilized at 61.6% of jobs separated.  In comparison to May of last year, an additional 329 thousand workers felt confident enough to quit — this is a good sign.

When good news in the old methodology like the Jobs Report is supported by the new methodology like the JOLTS report, this is a great sign!