B2 ESL lesson using a Visual Capitalist infographic about quit rates, job stability and workplace choices.
B2JobsData
Before you read
Some jobs have high turnover: many workers leave voluntarily when they find better pay, better hours, or more stable conditions. This lesson looks at which American industries workers quit most often and which they leave least often.
Warm-up
1. What makes people leave a job voluntarily?
2. Which jobs do you think have the highest turnover?
3. Would you prefer higher pay or stronger job security?
Click the graphic to open the original Visual Capitalist article.
Reading Comprehension
Read the adapted B2 text. Revealed answers appear in green and the exact evidence is highlighted.
Why do some jobs keep workers for many years, while others struggle to keep staff? The answer often depends on pay, benefits, work schedules, promotion opportunities and job security.
The Visual Capitalist graphic uses U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data from March 2026. Because quits are voluntary, the quit rate shows where workers are most willing to walk away from their jobs.
Accommodation and food services had the highest quit rate, at 4.3%, more than double the U.S. average. Many roles in this sector involve low base pay, changing schedules, physical work and uncertain tips. These conditions can make workers more likely to leave.
Retail trade also had a high quit rate, at 3.1%. Retail jobs often have lower barriers to entry and many part-time positions. As a result, workers may move more easily if they find better pay, hours or working conditions elsewhere.
At the other end of the ranking, government jobs had the lowest quit rates. Federal government jobs had a 0.6% quit rate, while state and local government jobs had a 0.8% rate. These jobs often include pensions, strong benefits, predictable schedules and civil service protections.
Industries with lower pay, less stable schedules or higher turnover tended to have the highest quit rates. By contrast, industries with stronger salaries, benefits and stability, such as information, finance and government, generally had lower quit rates.
The chart also helps explain why the public sector can look very different from the private sector. In many government roles, the value of pensions and benefits increases when employees stay for longer. This gives workers a financial reason not to leave.
Questions
1. What does a quit rate measure?
It measures where workers are most willing to leave their jobs voluntarily.
2. Which industry had the highest quit rate?
Accommodation and food services had the highest quit rate, at 4.3%.
3. Which jobs had the lowest quit rates?
Government jobs had the lowest rates: 0.6% for federal government and 0.8% for state and local government.
4. What kinds of industries tend to have higher quit rates?
Industries with lower pay, less stable schedules or high turnover tend to have higher quit rates.
5. Why might government employees be less likely to leave?
Because pensions and benefits often become more valuable when employees stay longer.
Vocabulary
Exercise 1: Workplace vocabulary
Click an answer. It will immediately turn green or red.
1. What does turnover mean?
the total money a company earns
the rate at which employees leave and are replaced
a worker's annual holiday allowance
2. What does voluntary mean?
done by choice
required by law
paid every month
3. What are benefits in a job?
small mistakes at work
weekly tasks
extra compensation such as health insurance or pensions
4. What does retention mean?
hiring workers quickly
keeping employees in an organisation
reducing customer demand
Exercise 2: Collocations
1. ______ job security
strong
heavy
wide
2. ______ schedules
portable
federal
predictable
3. ______ workers
preserve
retain
surpass
4. ______ turnover
reduce
collect
borrow
Grammar: Advanced data commentary
Focus: describing rankings and explaining contrasts. Use comparative clauses, contrast linkers and participle clauses to write precise comments about data.
Structure
Example
whereas / while
Food services had the highest rate, whereas government had the lowest.
more than double
The food services rate was more than double the national average.
participle clause
Offering pensions and stable schedules, government jobs are harder to leave.
Exercise 1: Choose the best data sentence
Click an answer. It will turn green or red.
1. Which sentence is best?
Food services has much high quit.
Food services was quit more than government.
Food services had a much higher quit rate than government.
2. Choose the best contrast sentence.
Government jobs are stable because food jobs are high.
Retail had a high quit rate, whereas federal government had a very low one.
Retail and government quit rates are the same contrast.
3. Choose the correct participle clause.
Offering pensions and strong benefits, government jobs may encourage workers to stay.
Offered pensions and benefits, workers to stay.
To offer pensions, government jobs staying workers.
Exercise 2: Rewrite the data commentary
1. Food services had 4.3%. Federal government had 0.6%. Use whereas.
Food services had a 4.3% quit rate, whereas federal government had a rate of only 0.6%.
2. Government jobs offer pensions and predictable schedules. They are harder to leave. Use a participle clause.
Offering pensions and predictable schedules, government jobs are harder to leave.
3. Low pay and unstable hours can increase turnover. Use tend to.
Industries with low pay and unstable hours tend to have higher turnover.
Discussion
Talk about it
1. Which factor matters most to you: pay, schedule, benefits or job security?
2. Why might young workers change jobs more often than older workers?
3. Can high turnover ever be positive for workers?
4. Which industries in your country probably have the highest quit rates?
Useful language
Comparing: The rate is significantly higher/lower than...
Explaining causes: This may be due to...
Adding nuance: However, the picture is more complicated because...
Giving an opinion: From my point of view, job security matters because...
Mini task
Write a short paragraph explaining why one industry might have high employee turnover. Use at least two vocabulary items from the lesson.
