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

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released their monthly look at the US employment situation and the data for June looks very promising after May’s disappointing numbers. 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.

Before we get to the June jobs report, let’s revisit May’s US job numbers. Last month, the BLS reported that nonfarm payroll employment rose slightly by 75,000 jobs while the unemployment rate held steady at 3.6% (approximately 5.9 million professionals) – the lowest rate in 50 years. A deeper look at the US jobs data and industries hiring in 2019 showed moderate growth in a few areas while others declined or registered no change at all.

• Professional and business services – 33,000 jobs added
• Healthcare – 16,000 jobs added
• Construction – 4,000 jobs added
• Manufacturing, wholesale trade, leisure and hospitality, retail trade, transportation and warehousing – no change

The June jobs report showed total nonfarm payroll employment jumping by 224,000, unemployment rising very slightly to 3.7%, and the number of unemployed persons rising to 6 million. Here are some other highlights of the labor department jobs report:

• The number of long-term unemployed changed a little to 1.4 million in June, accounting for 23.7 percent
• of the unemployed.
• The labor force participation rate registered a small increase and now sits at 62.9%.
• The number of people employed part time for economic reasons (AKA involuntary part-time workers) dropped by another 100,000 and now totals 4.3 million.
• Average hourly earnings for all employees on nonfarm payrolls rose by 6 cents to $27.90. Since the beginning of the year, average hourly earnings have increased by 3.1 percent.

June saw decent growth for a few industries hiring in 2019. Professional and business services continued an upward trend by adding 51,000 jobs, health care added 35,000 jobs, transportation and warehousing increased by 24,000 jobs, construction added 21,000 jobs, and manufacturing edged up a little, adding 17,000 jobs in June. Key industries like wholesale trade, leisure and hospitality, financial activities, and retail trade saw no change.

Overall, the labor department jobs report suggests the economy is in good shape. Whether you’re looking for top talent or searching for your dream job, there’s still plenty of opportunity out there, and you can find it on iHire.

For more information on how the BLS tracks and updates US job numbers and calculates the unemployment rate, check out this informative post on FiveThirtyEight.