November Employment Blog

By Stephen Singer, November 19, 2015

This report is taken from the U S Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 271,000 in October, and the unemployment rate was essentially unchanged at 5.0 percent. Job gains occurred in professional and business services, healthcare, retail trade, food services and drinking places, and construction. Incorporating revisions for August and September, which increased nonfarm payroll employment by 12,000, on net, monthly job gains averaged 187,000 over the past 3 months. In the 12 months prior to October, employment growth averaged 230,000 per month. This information is summarized in Charts 1 and 2.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Employment in professional and business services rose by 78,000 in October, compared with an average monthly gain of 52,000 over the prior 12 months. In October, job gains occurred in administrative and support services (+46,000), computer systems design and related services (+10,000), and architectural and engineering services (+8,000).

The health care industry added 45,000 jobs in October. Over the month, employment rose by 27,000 in ambulatory health care services (which includes offices of physicians and home health care) and by 18,000 in hospitals. Over the year, health care has added 495,000 jobs, with about a third of the gain in hospitals.

Retail trade employment grew by 44,000 in October, compared with an average monthly gain of 25,000 over the prior 12 months. In October, job gains occurred in clothing and accessories stores (+20,000), general merchandise stores (+11,000), and automobile dealers (+6,000).

Within the leisure and hospitality industry, employment in food services and drinking places rose by 42,000 in October and by 368,000 over the year.

Construction added 31,000 jobs in October, following little change in recent months. Over the month, nonresidential specialty trade contractors added 21,000 jobs. Over the past 12 months, construction employment has increased by 233,000.

Employment in mining continued to trend down in October (-5,000). Since reaching a recent peak in December 2014, employment in this industry has declined by 109,000.

Manufacturing employment was unchanged over the month and has shown little net change thus far this year.

In September, the Midwest had the lowest regional unemployment rate, 4.5 percent, while the West had the highest rate, 5.6 percent. Over the month, no region had a statistically significant unemployment rate change. Significant over-the-year rate decreases occurred in all four regions: the Midwest (-1.0 percentage point), Northeast and West (-0.9 point each), and South (-0.7 point). (See table 1.) Among the nine geographic divisions, the West North Central had the lowest unemployment rate, 4.0 percent in September. The East South Central and Pacific had the highest rates, 5.7 percent each. Over the month, no division had a statistically significant jobless rate change. All divisions except the Mountain had significant rate changes from a year earlier, all of which were declines. The largest of these decreases occurred in the East North Central and Pacific (-1.3 percentage points each).