The September Employment Situation Summary was released this morning by the Bureau of Labor Statistics showing that the unemployment rate was unchanged at 9.6% and 95,000 jobs were lost. Private sector payrolls increased by 64,000 last month.
The report showed that the recovery continues to be gradual. Government jobs decreased by 159,000, including 77,000 temporary 2010 Census jobs that ended last month. It is estimated that about 6,000 census workers remain on government payroll, down from a peak of 564,000 workers in May. However, only 95,000 jobs were lost overall in September due to the 64,000 private sector jobs added.
Here is a sampling of where jobs were added in September:
- Healthcare jobs increased by 24,000, making healthcare one of the few industries that have continually grown even through the recession.
- Employment service jobs increased by 28,000, mostly due to gains in temporary help services.
- Food service jobs also increased, adding 34,000 jobs last month.
It is clear that while the economy has shown some signs of improvement, the recovery from the most recent recession will be lengthy.
