US job openings rising in August as hiring falls

WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. employers advertised the most job openings in nearly 14 years during August, yet their pace of hiring fell compared to July.

The number of available jobs rose 230,000 to 4.84 million during the month, the Labor Department said Tuesday. Restaurants, hotels and health care providers drove much of the increase, which resulted in the most openings since January 2001.

But total hiring fell 294,000 to 4.64 million, driven by declines in construction and retail. This suggests a potential mismatch between the wages employers are willing to pay and the skills of the workers available to be hired.

Still, the report suggests that employers expect economic growth to continue, creating a need for more workers. The September jobs report showed that employers added 248,000 jobs last month, as the unemployment rate slid to 5.9 percent from 6.1 percent.

"This is more evidence that we should expect further robust gains in employment over the next few months and, consequently, further declines in the unemployment rate," said Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics.

The big question is when wage growth will meaningfully surpass inflation. Average hourly wages are up just 2.3 percent over the past 12 months.