May 2, 2025
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 177,000 in April, while the unemployment rate remained relatively stable at 4.2%. Employment saw notable increases in health care, financial activities, transportation and warehousing, and social assistance, whereas federal government employment experienced a decline. These findings are based on two monthly surveys: the household survey, which measures labour force status, including unemployment by demographic characteristics, and the establishment survey, which assesses nonfarm employment, hours, and earnings by industry.
Household Survey Data
In April, the unemployment rate remained steady at 4.2%, with 7.2 million people unemployed. The rates for major worker groups, including adult men (4.0%), adult women (3.7%), teenagers (12.9%), Whites (3.8%), Blacks (6.3%), Asians (3.0%), and Hispanics (5.2%), showed little change.
The number of long-term unemployed increased by 179,000 to 1.7 million, making up 23.5% of all unemployed individuals.
The labour force participation rate (62.6%) and the employment-population ratio (60.0%) showed little change. The number of people employed part-time for economic reasons remained at 4.7 million. These individuals preferred full-time jobs but were working part-time due to reduced hours or inability to find full-time employment.
The number of people not in the labour force who wanted a job remained at 5.7 million. Among them, 1.6 million were marginally attached to the labour force, and 414,000 were discouraged workers who believed no jobs were available for them.
Establishment Survey Data
In April, total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 177,000, similar to the average monthly gain of 152,000 over the prior 12 months. Notable job gains occurred in health care, financial activities, transportation and warehousing, and social assistance. Health care added 51,000 jobs, with growth in ambulatory health care services and hospitals.
Employment in financial activities rose by 14,000, with gains in various sectors. Transportation and warehousing employment increased by 29,000, with job growth in warehousing and storage, couriers and messengers, and air transportation. Social assistance employment rose by 8,000.
Federal government employment declined by 9,000. Employment in other major industries, including mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction; construction; manufacturing; wholesale trade; retail trade; information; professional and business services; leisure and hospitality; and other services, showed little change over the month.
Average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 6 cents to $36.06, marking a 3.8% rise over the past year. The average workweek for all employees remained unchanged at 34.3 hours, with production and nonsupervisory employees also seeing no change at 33.8 hours.
Revisions for February and March showed a net decrease of 58,000 jobs, with February’s employment revised down by 15,000 to 102,000 and March’s revised down by 43,000 to 185,000. These revisions resulted from additional reports and recalculations of seasonal factors.
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