The July 2021 Jobs Report: What is the Current US Employment Situation?

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released their monthly overview of the US employment situation and the data for July has improved since June. The labor department jobs report examines a range of US jobs data to gauge the overall health of the US economy, specifically the number of jobs added, the unemployment rate, and what industries are hiring now.

The July jobs report shows an improvement in the labor market. The unemployment rate declined slightly to 5.4%, and total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 943,000. The number of unemployed decreased to 8.7 million (compared to 5.8 million in February 2020).

Here are some other key statistics from the labor department jobs report:

• Average hourly wages for employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 11 cents to $30.54 in July, after increases in June and May as well.
• 5.2 million people were unable to work because their employer closed or lost business due to the pandemic. This number has decreased by 1 million since June.
• 13.2% of people teleworked due to the pandemic in July. This number is down from 14.4% in June.

July brought job gains for many sectors including leisure and hospitality, education, and professional and business services. Here’s how industries were impacted in July:

Overall, the labor department jobs report suggests that the economy is showing improvement as the global economy is resuming activity. However, it’s a long road to economic recovery.

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