In June, total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 147,000, while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.1%. Job gains were led by state government, particularly in education and the health care sector. Federal government jobs continued to decline. Long-term unemployment increased to 1.6 million, and average hourly earnings rose by 0.2% to $36.30. The average workweek edged down slightly to 34.2 hours. Revisions to previous months’ data added 16,000 more jobs than earlier reported.
Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 147,000 in June, and the unemployment rate changed little at 4.1 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains occurred in state government and health care. Federal government continued to lose jobs.
This news release presents statistics from two monthly surveys. The household survey measures labor force status, including unemployment, by demographic characteristics. The establishment survey measures nonfarm employment, hours, and earnings by industry. For more information about the concepts and statistical methodology used in these two surveys, see the Technical Note.
Household Survey Data
Both the unemployment rate, at 4.1 percent, and the number of unemployed people, at 7.0 million, changed little in June. The unemployment rate has remained in a narrow range of 4.0 percent to 4.2 percent since May 2024.Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rate for Blacks (6.8 percent) increased in June, while the rates for adult women (3.6 percent) and Whites (3.6 percent) decreased. The jobless rates for adult men (3.9 percent), teenagers (14.4 percent), Asians (3.5 percent), and Hispanics (4.8 percent) showed little or no change over the month.
In June, the number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) increased by 190,000 to 1.6 million, largely offsetting a decrease in the prior month. The long-term unemployed accounted for 23.3 percent of all unemployed people.
The labor force participation rate changed little at 62.3 percent in June, and the employment-population ratio held at 59.7 percent.
The number of people employed part time for economic reasons, at 4.5 million, changed little in June. These individuals would have preferred full-time employment but were working part time because their hours had been reduced or they were unable to find full-time jobs.
The number of people not in the labor force who currently want a job was essentially unchanged at 6.0 million in June. These individuals were not counted as unemployed because they were not actively looking for work during the 4 weeks preceding the survey or were unavailable to take a job.
Among those not in the labor force who wanted a job, the number of people marginally attached to the labor force increased by 234,000 in June to 1.8 million. These individuals wanted and were available for work and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months but had not looked for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. The number of discouraged workers, a subset of the marginally attached who believed that no jobs were available for them, increased by 256,000 in June to 637,000.
Establishment Survey Data
Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 147,000 in June, in line with the average monthly gain of 146,000 over the prior 12 months. In June, job gains occurred in state government and health care. Federal government continued to lose jobs.Government employment rose by 73,000 in June. Employment in state government increased by 47,000, largely in education (+40,000). Employment in local government education continued to trend up (+23,000). Job losses continued in federal government (-7,000), where employment is down by 69,000 since reaching a recent peak in January. Employees on paid leave or receiving ongoing severance pay are counted as employed in the establishment survey.
Health care added 39,000 jobs in June, similar to the average monthly gain of 43,000 over the prior 12 months. In June, job gains occurred in hospitals (+16,000) and in nursing and residential care facilities (+14,000).
In June, social assistance employment continued to trend up (+19,000), reflecting continued growth in individual and family services (+16,000).
Employment showed little change over the month in other major industries, including mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction; construction; manufacturing; wholesale trade; retail trade; transportation and warehousing; information; financial activities; professional and business services; leisure and hospitality; and other services.
Average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 8 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $36.30 in June. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 3.7 percent. In June, average hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees rose by 9 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $31.24.
The average workweek for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls edged down by 0.1 hour to 34.2 hours in June. In manufacturing, the average workweek held at 40.1 hours, and overtime was unchanged at 2.9 hours. The average workweek for production and nonsupervisory employees on private nonfarm payrolls declined by 0.2 hour to 33.5 hours in June.
The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for April was revised up by 11,000, from +147,000 to +158,000, and the change for May was revised up by 5,000, from +139,000 to +144,000. With these revisions, employment in April and May combined is 16,000 higher than previously reported. Monthly revisions result from additional reports received from businesses and government agencies since the last published estimates and from the recalculation of seasonal factors.
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