Pay no attention to Friday's jobs numbers

Apr 2, 2020
The BLS monthly jobs report is based on surveys conducted in mid-March, before the recent wave of layoffs and furloughs.
Job listings are down in hospitality and travel during COVID-19. Above, a note of closure on the door of the Waterfront Hotel in Baltimore, Maryland, on March 19.
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Where's the wage growth?

Jan 10, 2020
In December, wage gains slowed from earlier in 2019, with average hourly earnings up 2.9% year over year.
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Labor Department deregulation expected to pick up steam after Acosta

Jul 12, 2019
Analysts say that under the new acting secretary, Patrick Pizella, deregulation is likely to quicken.
Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta gives a press conference at the U.S. Department of Labor on July 10, 2019 in Washington, D.C.
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Jobs report to top the agenda after the July 4 holiday

Jul 4, 2019
The big question: Is the trade war affecting hiring?
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Slowdown in employment is broad-based

Jun 7, 2019
But it's too soon to say the 10-year economic expansion has run its course.
Economists say some of the pullback in employment last month may be due to uncertainty about U.S. trade policy. Above, workers process cattle near the U.S.-Mexico border in Santa Teresa, New Mexico.
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For public good, not for profit.

Data show a job market that's slowing, or at least pausing

Dec 7, 2018
Two numbers in the Labor Department’s jobs report Friday seem to indicate the job market might be slowing down a bit, or at least hitting the pause button. First, what it calls the U-6 unemployment rate: It measures total unemployment, including discouraged and underemployed workers. It rose 0.2 percent to 7.6 percent. Second, within that U-6 […]

For some workers, big pay raises. Others, not so much.

Aug 3, 2018
Bank tellers, truck drivers and bartenders are among those in high demand.
Commuters make their way through Grand Central Terminal during evening rush hour in New York City.
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With unemployment so low, where are the workers coming from?

Aug 3, 2018
The U.S. economy created 157,000 jobs in July. The unemployment rate dipped to 3.9 percent. The last time was saw unemployment that low? The year 2000. What does all of this mean for wages? And for businesses looking to hire more workers?
Commuters arrive from Metro North Railroad trains in Grand Central Station in New York October 19, 2016.
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