What is open to work?

The difference between the two modes causes more debate than it deserves. The green frame widens reach — your whole network sees it and anyone can refer you — at the cost of making your search public, which is not always wise if you are still employed.

The recruiters-only mode avoids that, but it depends on someone using LinkedIn Recruiter and their search reaching you. LinkedIn does not guarantee your current employer will not see it: it filters people with your company's email domain, and that does not cover every case.

The signal alone does not do much. What moves things is the conversations around it: direct outreach, comments on industry posts, and messages to specific people.