August Jobs Report: Rate Falls, So Do Number Of People In Workforce
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This morning, the August Jobs report was released with some interesting twists to the figures by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Total nonfarm payroll increased by 96,000 workers, The report states, “The number of unemployed persons, at 12.5 million, was little changed in August”, however, the report states that the US unemployment rate fell from 8.3% to 8.1%.
The previous month’s report was also revised to reflect fewer jobs than originally thought. June’s numbers were dropped by 19,000 fewer nonfarm payroll employees, and July was revised to 22,000 fewer:
Confused yet?
Let’s take a look at some of the data points in the report:
- The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) was little changed at 5.0 million. These individuals accounted for 40.0 percent of the unemployed.
- Both the civilian labor force (154.6 million) and the labor force participation rate (63.5 percent) declined in August.
- The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) was little changed at 8.0 million in August. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job.
- In August, 2.6 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, essentially unchanged from a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey.
- Among the marginally attached, there were 844,000 discouraged workers in August, a decline of 133,000 from a year earlier. (These data are not seasonally adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.7 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in August had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities.
- Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 96,000 in August.
- Employment in food services and drinking places increased by 28,000 in August
- Employment in professional and technical services rose in August (+27,000). Job gains occurred in computer systems design and related services (+11,000) and management and technical consulting services (+9,000).
- Health care employment rose by 17,000 in August. Ambulatory health care services and hospitals added 14,000 and 6,000 jobs, respectively. From June through August, job growth in health care averaged 15,000 per month, compared with an average monthly gain of 28,000 in the prior 12 months.
- Utilities employment increased in August (+9,000). The increase reflects the return of utility workers who were off payrolls in July due to a labor-management dispute.
- Within financial activities, finance and insurance added 11,000 jobs in August.
- Employment in wholesale trade continued to trend up. Employment in temporary help services changed little over the month and has shown little movement, on net, since February.
- Manufacturing employment edged down in August (-15,000). A decline in motor vehicles and parts (-8,000) partially offset a gain in July. Auto manufacturers laid off fewer workers for factory retooling than usual in July, and fewer workers than usual were recalled in August.
- Employment in other major industries, including mining and logging, construction, retail trade, transportation and warehousing, information, and government, showed little change over the month.
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