Speaking to Fortune about the general state of the labor market in a new interview, Zhao said Glassdoor’s data shows that “more and more workers are sitting tight in their roles and feeling stuck as a result.”
BofA’s latest report finds the J2J move rate fell sharply from its 2022 peak and now sits just 2% higher than pre-pandemic levels—having trended downward most of the past year. Wage increases for job-hoppers have collapsed, too, with median pay raises for switchers dropping from 20% in 2022 to just 7% as of July 2025, even dipping below 2019 averages. BofA cites data from the Atlanta Fed showing that from May through July, wage growth for job-switchers equaled that of job-stayers; the last time this happened was in 2010, during the tepid recovery of the Great Recession.
BofA’s granular payroll analysis reveals that job-changing has cooled dramatically in industries such as finance, information, and business services, where monthly pay periods are prevalent and job moves are rare. Meanwhile, job-changing remains a bit stronger in industries including manufacturing and construction, where weekly pay periods and ongoing labor supply issues keep turnover modestly higher. But overall, with the rate of job-changers receiving monthly pay dropping and weekly pay outpacing other types, the “white-collar job-hopper” is disappearing fastest.
To finish its report, BofA zoomed out to look at younger workers and the plight of Gen Z, noting that over 13% of unemployed Americans in July were new entrants or those looking for jobs with no prior work experience, which skews toward Gen Z. That is the highest since 1988, according to the Richmond Fed. Worryingly, the unemployment rate for young workers has continued to climb, reaching 7.4% in June.
Citing research from the International Labor Organization, BofA argues that young people have suffered higher employment losses than older workers and have quit their studies due to disruptions in education and on-the-job training. A proprietary BofA survey finds younger generations are more likely to be negatively affected by factors related to work/employment.
Overall, the bank estimates that “some 289 million young people globally are neither gaining professional experience through a job nor developing skills by participating in an educational or vocational program, limiting economic gains.” BofA sees dim employment prospects for young workers in the medium term, given uncertainty from the new tariffs regime, the adoption of AI, and the general drag on entry-level positions.
In this economy, then, the job-huggers are betting that there isn’t a better opportunity out there, and the young workers find themselves on the outside looking in. BofA doesn’t project any scenarios in the event of a recession, but with the economy stalling out for job-hoppers, the workforce is in white-knuckle mode, holding on tight.
