[skybrian]

It gives you some idea what the job market is like, on average, based on people who are actually in the market.

From the point of view of employers looking for workers, only the people who apply for open positions actually count. If nobody's applying, there's a shortage. They might have to start paying more. That's meaningful, good news for workers.

On the other hand, if people who weren't looking for work start applying again, it would mean the official unemployment rate goes up. Seems like that could easily happen.