The U.S. economy added 162,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in August while the national unemployment rate held steady at 4.1%, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The hiring expansion surpassed consensus forecasts from economists, who had projected a gain of approximately 65,000 positions following a subdued summer. The government also issued upward revisions to prior months, lifting June payroll gains from 20,000 to 31,000 and revising July figures from an initial decline of 23,000 to a net gain of 21,000. Together, the adjustments added 55,000 positions to previously reported totals, pulling the three-month moving average of payroll growth to 71,000.
Service-sector hiring generated the largest portion of the monthly gains. Food services and drinking places led all industries by adding 59,000 jobs, outpacing the sector’s 12-month average increase of 12,000. Local government education payrolls rebounded by 42,000, reversing contractions recorded earlier in the summer. Goods-producing sectors showed renewed momentum: construction employment rose by 22,000, and manufacturing payrolls expanded by 16,000, driven by advances in fabricated metals and machinery production. Healthcare providers added 13,000 workers, continuing an extended hiring run despite cooling from its monthly average of 32,000 over the past year.
| Industry Sector | August Payroll Change | Notable Trends |
| Food Services & Drinking Places | +59,000 | Accelerated well above 12-month trend |
| Local Government Education | +42,000 | Rebounded after July declines |
| Construction | +22,000 | Driven by commercial and data center projects |
| Manufacturing | +16,000 | Gains in machinery and fabricated metals |
| Healthcare | +13,000 | Moderate pace led by home health and hospitals |
| Information | -23,000 | Continued losses in tech, media, and publishing |
| Financial Activities | -11,000 | Contractions across banking and credit |
| Federal Government | -5,000 | Extended ongoing head-count reductions |
White-collar industries contracted during the same period. The information sector shed 23,000 jobs, extending persistent reductions in software hosting, publishing, data processing, and broadcast media. Financial activities cut 11,000 positions, while federal government payrolls fell by 5,000.
Wage growth moderated over the 12-month span. Average hourly earnings for private-sector workers climbed 10 cents, or 0.3%, to $37.75. Year-over-year hourly wage growth reached 3.1%, marking an easing pace of earnings expansion that may reduce broader wage-push inflation pressures. The average workweek for private nonfarm employees lengthened slightly by 0.1 hour to 34.4 hours, while manufacturing workers logged an average of 40.5 hours.
The household survey showed steady labor force engagement. The labor force participation rate edged up to 61.6% from July’s low mark, and the employment-to-population ratio remained unchanged at 59.1%. Prime-age employment—encompassing workers aged 25 to 54—held steady at 80.4%. The tally of workers employed part-time for economic reasons dropped by 414,000 to 4.4 million, while long-term unemployed individuals totaled 1.9 million, accounting for 27% of all jobless persons.
No questions yet. Be the first to ask!
