The number of job openings edged up to 4 million in November, the most since March 2008, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.

Labor market churn remains slow, going on five years after the official end of the 2007-09 recession. The number of hires, at 4.5 million, changed little between October and November. Total separations, including layoffs, quits and discharges, also hardly budged, according to the BLS’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey.

Recommended Stories

Janet Yellen: The job market is ‘tougher now than in any recession’ in some ways

Six years later, U.S. finally regains jobs lost in crisis

Job creation falls just short of expectations in September at 156,000, unemployment at 5 percent