Job-quitting on the rise

A new nationwide employment trend may be emerging. In rough terms, employees are saying, “I quit!” as often as they're hearing, “You're fired!”

More concretely: of those individuals who left a job in September (also known as “separations”), 50% were voluntary, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

In September 2009, 41% of private sector separations across the U.S. were voluntary, according to Chicago-based Challenger Gray & Christmas. The increase in quitting activity could be employees seeking a better career opportunity as the recession eases.

Of course, unemployment remains a greater relative challenge to Florida's economy than it does to the rest of the nation. Florida's unemployment rate in September was 11.9%, compared to the national rate of 9.6%.