April U.S. Unemployment Rate changes little at 3.4%
THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION -- APRIL 2023
Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 253,000 in April, and the unemployment rate
changed little at 3.4 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.
Employment continued to trend up in professional and business services, health care,
leisure and hospitality, and social assistance.
Household Survey Data
Both the unemployment rate, at 3.4 percent, and the number of unemployed persons, at
5.7 million, changed little in April. The unemployment rate has ranged from 3.4 percent
to 3.7 percent since March 2022. (See table A-1.)
Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (3.3 percent), adult
women (3.1 percent), teenagers (9.2 percent), Whites (3.1 percent), Blacks (4.7 percent),
Asians (2.8 percent), and Hispanics (4.4 percent) showed little or no change in April.
(See tables A-1, A-2, and A-3.)
The number of job losers and persons who completed temporary jobs decreased by 307,000
in April to 2.6 million. (See table A-11.)
The number of persons jobless less than 5 weeks decreased by 406,000 to 1.9 million in
April. The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) changed
little over the month at 1.2 million and accounted for 20.6 percent of the total
unemployed. (See table A-12.)
Both the labor force participation rate, at 62.6 percent, and the employment-population
ratio, at 60.4 percent, were unchanged in April. These measures remain below their
pre-pandemic February 2020 levels (63.3 percent and 61.1 percent, respectively). (See
table A-1.)
The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons, at 3.9 million, was
little changed in April. These individuals, who would have preferred full-time
employment, were working part time because their hours had been reduced or they were
unable to find full-time jobs. (See table A-8.)
The number of persons not in the labor force who currently want a job increased by
346,000 over the month to 5.3 million. 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. (See table A-1.)
Among those not in the labor force who wanted a job, the number of persons marginally
attached to the labor force increased by 191,000 to 1.5 million in April. 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, was little changed over the month at 364,000.
(See Summary table A.)
Establishment Survey Data
Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 253,000 in April, compared with the
average monthly gain of 290,000 over the prior 6 months. In April, employment continued
to trend up in professional and business services, health care, leisure and hospitality,
and social assistance. (See table B-1.)
In April, employment continued to trend up in professional and business services
(+43,000). Over the prior 6 months, the average monthly gain in the industry was
25,000. In April, professional, scientific, and technical services added 45,000
jobs. Employment in temporary help services continued to trend down over the month
(-23,000) and is down by 174,000 since its peak in March 2022.
Employment in health care increased by 40,000 in April, compared with the average
monthly gain of 47,000 over the prior 6 months. Over the month, employment continued
to trend up in ambulatory health care services (+24,000), nursing and residential
care facilities (+9,000), and hospitals (+7,000).
Employment in leisure and hospitality continued to trend up in April (+31,000),
largely in food services and drinking places (+25,000). Leisure and hospitality
had added an average of 73,000 jobs per month over the prior 6 months. Employment
in this industry remains below its pre-pandemic February 2020 level by 402,000,
or 2.4 percent.
In April, social assistance added 25,000 jobs, in line with the average monthly
gain of 21,000 over the prior 6 months. Individual and family services added 21,000
jobs over the month.
Employment in financial activities increased by 23,000 in April, with gains in
insurance carriers and related activities (+15,000) and in real estate (+9,000).
Employment in financial activities changed little in the first 3 months of this
year.
Government employment continued its upward trend in April (+23,000). Government
had added an average of 52,000 jobs per month over the prior 6 months. Overall,
employment in government is below its February 2020 level by 301,000, or 1.3 percent.
Employment in mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction rose by 6,000 in April
and has risen by 102,000 since a recent low in February 2021. Nearly all of the
April job gain occurred in support activities for mining.
Employment was little changed over the month in other major industries, including
construction, manufacturing, wholesale trade, retail trade, transportation and
warehousing, information, and other services.
In April, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls
rose by 16 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $33.36. Over the past 12 months, average
hourly earnings have increased by 4.4 percent. In April, average hourly earnings
of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees rose by 11 cents, or
0.4 percent, to $28.62. (See tables B-3 and B-8.)
The average workweek for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls was unchanged
at 34.4 hours in April. In manufacturing, the average workweek was little changed
at 40.2 hours, and overtime remained at 2.9 hours. The average workweek for
production and nonsupervisory employees on private nonfarm payrolls edged down
by 0.1 hour to 33.8 hours. (See tables B-2 and B-7.)
The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for February was revised down by
78,000, from +326,000 to +248,000, and the change for March was revised down by
71,000, from +236,000 to +165,000. With these revisions, employment in February
and March combined is 149,000 lower 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.)
Employment Situation Summary Table A. Household data, seasonally adjusted
Employment Situation Summary Table B. Establishment data, seasonally adjusted
Employment Situation Frequently Asked Questions
Employment Situation Technical Note
Table A-1. Employment status of the civilian population by sex and age
Table A-2. Employment status of the civilian population by race, sex, and age
Table A-3. Employment status of the Hispanic or Latino population by sex and age
Table A-4. Employment status of the civilian population 25 years and over by educational attainment
Table A-7. Employment status of the civilian population by nativity and sex, not seasonally adjusted
Table A-8. Employed persons by class of worker and part-time status
Table A-9. Selected employment indicators
Table A-10. Selected unemployment indicators, seasonally adjusted
Table A-11. Unemployed persons by reason for unemployment
Table A-12. Unemployed persons by duration of unemployment
Table A-13. Employed and unemployed persons by occupation, not seasonally adjusted
Table A-14. Unemployed persons by industry and class of worker, not seasonally adjusted
Table A-15. Alternative measures of labor underutilization
Table A-16. Persons not in the labor force and multiple jobholders by sex, not seasonally adjusted
Table B-1. Employees on nonfarm payrolls by industry sector and selected industry detail
Table B-5. Employment of women on nonfarm payrolls by industry sector, seasonally adjusted