The Bureau of Labor Statistics has released its November 2024 Report, so let’s take a look at how employment fared over the last month.
The great news is:
- Job Growth Surges: Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 227,000 in November, well above the monthly average of 186,000 over the past year. Key sectors like health care, leisure and hospitality, government, and social assistance saw significant gains.
- Earnings Increase: Average hourly earnings for private-sector workers rose by 0.4% to $35.61, marking a 4% increase over the past year.
- Revised Numbers Show Stronger Trends: Revisions to September and October added a combined 56,000 jobs to previous estimates, reinforcing the positive employment trend.
The good news is:
- Strike Recovery Boosts Manufacturing: Transportation equipment manufacturing added 32,000 jobs as striking workers returned, reflecting a rebound in this sector.
- Steady Labor Force Metrics: Labor force participation remained stable at 62.5%, and the employment-population ratio held steady at 59.8%.
- Key Sector Growth:
- Health Care: Added 54,000 jobs, with gains in home health care services, hospitals, and nursing facilities.
- Leisure and Hospitality: Increased by 53,000 jobs, driven by food services and drinking places.
- Government: Continued upward trend with 33,000 new jobs, led by state government hiring.
The bad news is:
- Rising Unemployment Rate: The unemployment rate remained at 4.2%, up from 3.7% a year earlier. This reflects 7.1 million unemployed individuals, an increase of 800,000 over the year.
- Retail Trade Declines: The sector lost 28,000 jobs in November, with general merchandise retailers seeing the largest drops.
- Long-Term Unemployment Stubbornly High: The number of long-term unemployed individuals (27 weeks or more) held at 1.7 million, making up 23.2% of total unemployment.
- Part-Time Workers for Economic Reasons Up: The number of people working part-time due to economic constraints rose to 4.5 million, up 500,000 from a year ago.