US employers have announced 19,536 hiring plans in May 2026, higher than 10,049 in April. Technology led May hiring with 11,250 announced positions, followed by Electronics with 3,158 and Insurance with 1,435. The Energy sector, buoyed by high oil prices, announced 800 new jobs in May, its strongest month since energy companies announced 885 planned hires in October 2025. Through May 2026, US employers have announced 80,472 planned hires, narrowly topping the 79,741 announced at this point in 2025. Hiring announcements remain historically low by prepandemic standards. Year-to-date, Automotive leads all industries with 12,258 hiring plans. source: Challenger, Gray and Christmas, Inc.

Hiring Plans Announcements in the United States averaged 87593.97 Persons from 2011 until 2026, reaching an all time high of 939790.00 Persons in September of 2021 and a record low of 1494.00 Persons in August of 2025. This page includes a chart with historical data for the United States Hiring Plans Announcements. United States Challenger Hiring Plans Announcements - values, historical data and charts - was last updated on June of 2026.

Related	Last	Previous	Unit	Reference
ADP Employment Change	122.00	105.00	Thousand	May 2026
Average Hourly Earnings MoM	0.30	0.20	percent	May 2026
Average Hourly Earnings YoY	3.40	3.60	percent	May 2026
Average Weekly Hours	34.30	34.30	Hours	May 2026
Challenger Job Cuts	97006.00	83387.00	Persons	May 2026
Continuing Jobless Claims	1777.00	1785.00	Thousand	May 2026
Employed Persons	162771.00	162622.00	Thousand	May 2026
Employment Cost Index	0.90	0.70	percent	Mar 2026
Employment Cost - Benefits	1.20	0.80	percent	Mar 2026
Employment Cost - Wages	0.80	0.70	percent	Mar 2026
Employment Rate	59.20	59.10	percent	May 2026
Full Time Employment	134173.00	134252.00	Thousand	May 2026
Government Payrolls	52.00	2.00	Thousand	May 2026
Challenger Hiring Plans	19536.00	10049.00	Persons	May 2026
Initial Jobless Claims	225.00	212.00	Thousand	May 2026
Job Layoffs and Discharges	1692.00	1884.00	Thousand	Apr 2026
JOLTs Job Openings	7618.00	6887.00	Thousand	Apr 2026
JOLTs Job Quits	2977.00	3160.00	Thousand	Apr 2026
Job Quits Rate	1.90	2.00	Percent	Apr 2026
Job Openings	8176.00	6677.00	Thousand	Apr 2026
Jobless Claims 4-week Average	214.75	208.25	Thousand	May 2026
Participation Rate	61.80	61.80	percent	May 2026
Labour Costs	123.78	123.22	points	Mar 2026
Long Term Unemployment Rate	1.17	1.08	percent	May 2026
Manufacturing Payrolls	7.00	0.00	Thousand	May 2026
Minimum Wages	7.25	7.25	USD/Hour	Dec 2026
Non Farm Payrolls	172.00	179.00	Thousand	May 2026
Nonfarm Payrolls Private	120.00	177.00	Thousand	May 2026
Nonfarm Productivity	0.30	1.60	percent	Mar 2026
Part Time Employment	28679.00	28413.00	Thousand	May 2026
Population	342.28	340.97	Million	Dec 2025
Productivity	119.40	119.35	points	Mar 2026
Retirement Age Men	67.00	66.83	Years	Dec 2026
Retirement Age Women	67.00	66.83	Years	Dec 2026
U-6 Unemployment Rate	8.10	8.20	percent	May 2026
Unemployed Persons	7307.00	7373.00	Thousand	May 2026
Unemployment Rate	4.30	4.30	percent	May 2026
Unit Labour Costs	1.80	2.10	percent	Mar 2026
Wage Growth	3.53	3.28	percent	Apr 2026
Wages	32.31	32.23	USD/Hour	May 2026
Wages in Manufacturing	30.19	30.10	USD/Hour	May 2026
Youth Unemployment Rate	9.40	9.50	percent	May 2026

United States Challenger Hiring Plans Announcements

The Challenger Job-Cut Report provides information on the total number of announced corporate layoffs. Produced by Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc., this monthly report collects and categorizes announcements of corporate layoffs using mass layoff data from state departments of labor.