According to the Labor Department, U.S. employers added 275,000 jobs in February. Additionally, according to a survey of households, the unemployment rate rose to 3.9 percent at a two year high. This increase was due to people losing or leaving jobs as well as those who entered the labor force in search for work. Furthermore, the amount of people working part-time over full-time has been increasing steadily and is now at 7.3 percent. For people aged 25 to 54, the labor force participation rate increased to 83.5 percent which has been the highest since the early 2000s. The labor force participation rate for those over age 55 has remained less than the level before the pandemic as stock markets have allowed more people to retire.
While there was a slight decrease in wage growth in February, average hourly earnings increased by 4.3 percent over the year. This has had a positive impact on individuals and has encouraged them to re-enter the labor market. In recent months, there has been a good amount of strong economic indicators, causing analysts to revise their GDP forecasts upwards and lower their expectations for unemployment trajectories. Though there was initially concerns about inflation, now that the inflation rates have eased, the Federal Reserve has planned to cut interest rates this year. While some industries have a strong demand for skilled workers, others are facing quite a bit of layoffs and uncertainties, specifically in technology and media. The labor market has a very uncertain future and while economists are optimistic, they also acknowledge the fact that unforeseen challenges may arrive.
Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/08/business/economy/jobs-report-february-2024.html
1 comment:
The labor market is showing a strong front despite the continued rate increases by the FED. With election at the end of this year, we can only hope that the economy gets better.
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