Turnover Rate Benchmarks

F1 — "Annual average rate" ≠ annual turnover

BLS JOLTS reports an annual average rate: the mean of twelve monthly rates, each computed against that month's employment level. It is not the same as “what share of the workforce left over the year” — that would require summing separations against a rolling headcount. Treat JOLTS annual-average figures as a rate index, not a headcount-turnover percentage.

F2 — Quits ≠ voluntary turnover; separations ≠ turnover

“Separations” (JOLTS Table 20) includes quits, layoffs/discharges, and other separations (retirements, deaths, transfers) combined — it is not a clean “turnover” figure by itself. “Quits” (Table 22) is the closest published proxy for voluntary turnover, but includes some non-resignation exits reported as quits by employers. “Layoffs and discharges” (Table 24) is the closest proxy for involuntary turnover. None of the three are interchangeable.