February 1994 Employment Situation

Historical release narrative reproduced from the official public-domain source. Statistical tables, standard technical appendices, administrative material and attendance rosters are omitted; formatting is adapted for reading. Figures retain the release's historical context and may have been revised. Consult the linked source for the complete document.

Nonfarm payroll employment rose in February, and the nation's unemployment rate was 6.5 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. The jobless rate had been 6.7 percent in January, the first month that household survey data were collected using a revised questionnaire and new collection procedures.

The February increase in payroll employment--217,000--came on the heels of flat, weather-impacted employment in January. Unusually severe winter weather affected the job situation in February as well and also caused a particularly large drop in the workweek.

Unemployment (Household Survey Data)

The unemployment rate was 6.5 percent in February; it had been 6.7 percent in January. The number of unemployed persons was 8.5 million in February. (See table A-1.)

The number in the newly jobless category--those unemployed for less than 5 weeks--showed a drop of nearly 800,000 in February to a level of 2.6 million, while the number unemployed from 5 to 14 weeks rose by nearly 400,000. (See table A-5.) These large changes stem, in part, from the implementation of technical improvements associated with the revised questionnaire and collection procedures.

The number of persons on temporary layoff was little changed over the month, while the number of other job losers fell by 170,000 to 3.1 million. In contrast, the number of unemployed who had voluntarily left their last job rose by 125,000 to nearly 900,000. (See table A-6.)

The count of persons employed part time for economic reasons-- sometimes referred to as the "partially unemployed"--totaled 4.6 million in February. (See table A-3.)

Total Employment and the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)

Total employment rose in February to a level of 122.3 million. The employment-population ratio--the proportion of the working-age population with jobs--was 62.3 percent, about the same as in January. The ratio for adult women (56.1 percent) rose over the month, while those for adult men (72.3 percent) and teenagers (43.1 percent) were about unchanged. (See table A-1.)

A total of 7.0 million workers, (not seasonally adjusted), or 5.8 percent of all employed persons, held two or more jobs in February. (The new survey collects these data on a monthly basis.) (See table A-8.)

The labor force participation rate in February was 66.7 percent (seasonally adjusted), the same as in January. There were 130.8 million people in the labor force in February. (See table A-1.)

Discouraged Workers (Household Survey Data)

The number of discouraged workers--people who wanted a job but had given up the search for work because they believed their efforts would be futile--was about 500,000 in February (not seasonally adjusted). (See table A-8.) Under the less restrictive definition in use prior to 1994, the number of discouraged workers had held steady at 1.1 million for over 2 years.

Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey Data)

Payroll employment rose by 217,000 in February; it had been flat in the prior month (as revised). Although the overall February job gain was fairly strong, unusually severe weather continued to have an impact. Employment in some industries that are particularly weather sensitive, such as construction and eating and drinking places, declined even further as a result of continued bad weather. Other industries showed a full or partial rebound from depressed January levels. Nevertheless, overall job growth during the first 2 months of 1994 was at about half the pace of the last 4 months of 1993. (See table B-1.)

Manufacturing employment was up slightly (12,000) in February. The industry has added 78,000 jobs over the last 5 months, after experiencing large losses in the spring and summer of 1993. The largest February employment gains were recorded in industrial machinery, electronics, and food processing. Motor vehicles lost some of its January gain, and both the aircraft and apparel industries continued their downward trends. Construction employment, which is particularly sensitive to weather conditions, decreased by 22,000 (seasonally adjusted) in February, following a similar decline in January. Mining employment was flat over the month, as has been generally the case over the past year.

Employment in the services industry grew by 121,000, after sustaining a loss of 21,000 in January. Business services, amusements and recreation, and health services contributed heavily to the February gain, while agricultural services lost jobs (probably due to the bad weather) for the first time in nearly a year.

Retail trade employment rose by 58,000, rebounding from a small loss in January. Job gains in general merchandise and food stores, as well as automobile dealerships and service stations, more than offset a loss in eating and drinking establishments (-30,000) that very likely resulted from bad weather. Employment in wholesale trade increased by 14,000, continuing its recent pattern of growth. The finance industry also added 14,000 jobs over the month; the job total has increased by about 130,000 in the past year and a half.

Employment in the transportation industry rose by 13,000 in February, with trucking and warehousing contributing most of the industry's recent expansion. Total transportation employment is now approaching the peak level reached in December 1990.

Weekly Hours (Establishment Survey Data)

The average workweek for production or nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls fell sharply in February--0.5 hour--to 34.3 hours, seasonally adjusted, reflecting the impact of the extreme weather on most industries. The weather's influence was particularly evident in manufacturing, as temporary plant shutdowns led to an average workweek decline of 0.7 hour to 41.1 hours. On the other hand, factory overtime was up 0.2 hour to 4.6 hours, primarily because of extensive overtime use in motor vehicle plants. (See table B-2.)

Declines in the workweek caused the index of aggregate weekly hours of private production or nonsupervisory workers on nonfarm payrolls to drop 1.3 percent to 124.7 (1982=100) in February. The manufacturing index declined 1.4 percent to 101.1. (See table B-5.)

Hourly and Weekly Earnings (Establishment Survey Data)

Average hourly earnings of private production or nonsupervisory workers on nonfarm payrolls were up by 0.2 percent in February, after seasonal adjustment. Average weekly earnings declined by 1.3 percent. Before seasonal adjustment, average hourly earnings edged down 1 cent to $11.05 and average weekly earnings fell $4.76 to $375.70. Over the year, average hourly earnings increased by 2.6 percent and average weekly earnings by 2.3 percent. The latter comparison was affected by the February drop in the workweek. (See table B-3.)

HOUSEHOLD DATA Table A-1. Employment status of the civilian population by sex and age

1/ The population figures are not adjusted for seasonal variation; therefore, identical numbers appear in the unadjusted and seasonally adjusted columns. 2/ Data for 1994 are not directly comparable with data for 1993 and earlier years. For additional information, see "Revisions in the Current Population Survey Effective January 1994" in the February 1994 issue of Employment and Earnings.

1/ The population figures are not adjusted for seasonal variation; therefore, identical numbers appear in the unadjusted and seasonally adjusted columns. 2/ Data for 1994 are not directly comparable with data for 1993 and earlier years. For additional information, see "Revisions in the Current Population Survey Effective January 1994" in the February 1994 issue of Employment and Earnings. NOTE: Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups. Also, see note, table A-1. HOUSEHOLD DATA Table A-3. Selected employment indicators

(In thousands)

1/ Data for 1994 are not directly comparable with data for 1993 and earlier years. For additional information, see "Revisions in the Current Population Survey Effective January 1994" in the February 1994 issue of Employment and Earnings. NOTE: Persons at work excludes employed persons who were absent from their jobs during the entire reference week for reasons such as vacation, illness, or industrial dispute. Part time for noneconomic reasons excludes persons who usually work full time but worked only 1 to 34 hours during the reference week for reasons such as holidays, illness, and bad weather.

1/ Unemployment as a percent of the civilian labor force. 2/ Data for 1994 are not directly comparable with data for 1993 and earlier years. For additional information, see "Revisions in the Current Population Survey Effective January 1994" in the February 1994 issue of Employment and Earnings. 3/ Seasonally adjusted unemployment data for service occupations are not available because the seasonal components are small relative to the trend-cycle and/or irregular components and consequently cannot be separated with sufficient precision.

1/ Data for 1994 are not directly comparable with data for 1993 and earlier years. For additional information, see "Revisions in the Current Population Survey Effective January 1994" in the February 1994 issue of Employment and Earnings.

1/ Data for 1994 are not directly comparable with data for 1993 and earlier years. For additional information, see "Revisions in the Current Population Survey Effective January 1994" in the February 1994 issue of Employment and Earnings. 2/ Not available. HOUSEHOLD DATA Table A-7. Unemployed persons by age and sex, seasonally adjusted

1/ Unemployment as a percent of the civilian labor force. 2/ Data for 1994 are not directly comparable with data for 1993 and earlier years. For additional information, see "Revisions in the Current Population Survey Effective January 1994" in the February 1994 issue of Employment and Earnings.

1/ Data refer to persons who have searched for work during the prior 12 months and were available to take a job during the reference week. 2/ Includes thinks no work available, could not find work, lacks schooling or training, employer thinks too young or old, and other types of discrimination. 3/ Includes those who did not actively look for work in the prior 4 weeks for such reasons as child-care and transportation problems, as well as a small number for which reason for nonparticipation was not determined. 4/ Includes persons who work part time on their primary job and full time on their secondary job(s), not shown separately.

1/ These are the official Bureau of Labor Statistics' estimates used in the administration of Federal fund allocation programs. 2/ The population figures are not adjusted for seasonal variation; therefore, identical numbers appear in the unadjusted and the seasonally adjusted columns. 3/ Data for 1994 are not directly comparable with those for 1993 and prior years. For additional information, see "Revisions in the Current Population Survey Effective January 1994 issue of Employment and Earnings.

ESTABLISHMENT DATA ESTABLISHMENT DATA