A separation is indicated when a job is present in one quarter, but is not present in the following quarter.

A separation is reported by the Quarterly Workforce Indicators when an individual’s Social Security Number that appeared on a company’s payroll in the previous quarter is no longer present. Separations data is published at the industry level and modeled to occupation via staffing patterns. The QWI program produces a comprehensive tabulation of employment and wage information for workers covered by State unemployment insurance (UI) laws, similar to the QCEW program. For more information, see this publication.

Source: Census Bureau and Lightcast’s proprietary employment data