Financial FAQs
“The number of job openings was little changed at 6.9 million in February, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the month, hires decreased to 4.8 million, and total separations changed little at 5.0 million.” BLS.gov
The Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) was bad news for workers, as per this graph of its history of monthly job openings.
It has now fallen to just 6.9 million in February 2026, the total of available nonfarm payroll jobs tallied by the Labor Department. Actual job hirings fell to 4.8 million while 5.0 million left the workforce, a net loss of 200,000 jobs.
The tally has been below seven million openings since September 2024 as the U.S. economy had the fastest recovery in the developed world, down from more than 12 million job openings in March 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The actual number of hires has also continued to decline in part due to the tariff price hikes but also a decrease in immigration that was the source of a growing labor force during Biden’s presidency.
Former Clinton Labor Secretary Robert Reich listed the economic damage from Trump’s first term alone. He (Trump) pledged to be “the greatest jobs president that God has ever created.”
But he’s been the worst jobs president in American history. In his first term, Trump presided over a historic net loss of nearly 3 million jobs, the worst jobs numbers ever recorded under an American president, as tabulated by FactCheck.org.
FactCheck.org showed more the decline in Trump’s first term:
· The international trade deficit Trump promised to reduce went up. The U.S. trade deficit in goods and services in 2020 was the highest since 2008 and increased 36.3% from 2016.
· The number of people lacking health insurance rose by 3 million.
· The federal debt held by the public went up, from $14.4 trillion to $21.6 trillion.
And President Trump month-long war with Iran is adding to the damage with the blocked petroleum supply chain that provides so many necessary byproducts—such as fertilizer, natural gas and helium, for starters.
“After a month, your war has already cost 13 American lives, cost American taxpayers at least $30 billion, cost American consumers at least a dollar more per gallon of gas than they paid a month ago, pushed up food prices and mortgage rates, and pushed down the value of 401(k) retirement plans. It’s mangled supply chains for industries that rely on items such as fertilizer to grow food or helium to make computer chips,” said Professor Reich
Job creation has been going downhill since Biden because job creation has never been the Trump administration’s priority. Trump’s current vacillation on the reason for the Iran war is the biggest tell. He says it isn’t regime change or prevention of a nuclear bomb any more. He might even allow Iran to maintain control of the Strait.
The Iran War will add to the damage that has already been done to the U.S.—and maybe worldwide—economy from the single-minded focus on what is most important to President Trump and his Robber Barons; bringing back another Gilded Age with its ultra-consolidation of wealth that has caused record public debt that is being paid for by American taxpayers.
So we shouldn’t be looking at the 1970’s era of stagflation for a result from the Iran War because of the damage already done in President Trump’s second term, whether the Strait is closed, or not. It may take longer to materialize but look more like another Great Recession, I said recently, that was caused by the economic mismanagement of another Republican administration involved in a Middle East war.
A key will be watching the employment picture this week, especially the Labor Department’s Friday unemployment report.
Harlan Green © 2026
Follow Harlan Green on Twitter: https://twitter.com/HarlanGreen
