April 1995 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.

Unemployment increased in April and nonfarm payroll employment was unchanged, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. The nation's jobless rate rose by 0.3 percentage point to 5.8 percent in April.

The number of payroll jobs, as measured by the survey of employers, remained at 115.8 million in April. Total employment, as measured by the household survey, was little changed at 125.1 million.

Unemployment (Household Survey Data)

The number of unemployed persons increased by 428,000 in April to 7.7 million, while the unemployment rate rose by 0.3 percentage point to 5.8 percent. With the exception of Hispanics, whose jobless rate (8.8 percent) was about the same as in March, rates rose for all other major worker groups, including adult men (4.9 percent), adult women (5.2 percent), teenagers (17.5 percent), whites (5.0 percent), and blacks (10.7 percent). (See tables A-1 and A-2.)

The rise in unemployment reflected an increase in both the number of unemployed persons who were reentrants to the labor force and those who were on temporary layoff. In terms of the length of unemployment, most of the increase occurred among persons jobless for 15 weeks and over. (See tables A-5 and A-6.)

Total Employment and the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)

At 125.1 million, total employment was little changed over the month (after seasonal adjustment). The employment-population ratio--the proportion of the working-age population with jobs--was 63.1 percent. (See table A-1.)

A total of 7.7 million workers (not seasonally adjusted), or 6.2 percent of all employed persons, held two or more jobs in April. A year earlier, 6.0 percent of the employed held more than one job. (See table A-8.)

At 132.7 million, the civilian labor force was little changed in April. The labor force participation rate, at 67.0 percent, was also about the same as in March. (See table A-1.)

Persons Not in the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)

The number of persons with a marginal attachment to the labor force-- those who wanted and were available for work, but were no longer actively looking for jobs after having searched sometime in the past 12 months--was 1.4 million (not seasonally adjusted) in April. Of that total, those who were not looking because they believed that there were no jobs available for them--discouraged workers--numbered 385,000, somewhat below the level of a year earlier. (See table A-8.)

Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey Data)

Nonfarm payroll employment in April remained at the March level of 115.8 million, after seasonal adjustment. Job growth has slowed considerably thus far in 1995, with monthly gains averaging 173,000, compared with 292,000 during all of 1994. In April, nearly all industries experienced no job growth or small declines. (See table B-1.)

The lack of job growth between March and April may have reflected an unusual set of circumstances in several highly seasonal industries. Mild weather and the fact that the survey period (the week of the 12th) was the latest possible added to the March job growth in construction and in amusements and recreation within the services industry. Thus, some of the job growth recorded in March reflected growth that otherwise would have been recorded in April. In addition, the seasonal buildup in services, retail trade, and construction from March to April had been relatively large in the previous 3 years (1992-94), partly because in each case there were 5 weeks between the two collections. As a result, this year's seasonal "expectation" (which is based primarily on the prior 3 years) was relatively large. With only 4 weeks separating the surveys, however, the time period for which hiring could take place was reduced. All of this likely made employment in April appear weaker than it actually was.

Other industries generally are less affected by April seasonal trends. Manufacturing employment slipped for the second straight month. Declines occurred in the lumber and furniture industries, reflecting the slowdown in homebuilding, and in apparel and printing and publishing. Only industrial machinery continued to show large employment gains. Employment in wholesale trade continued its pattern of growth, although the pace has slowed from earlier in the year. There were also modest employment gains in transportation and public utilities, while employment in finance, insurance, and real estate was flat. Mining continued its long-term pattern of job decline. The Federal government continued to downsize, with employment falling by 14,000 in April and 174,000 since it began to decline 3 years earlier.

Weekly Hours (Establishment Survey Data)

The average workweek for production or nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls edged up to 34.6 hours (seasonally adjusted). The manufacturing workweek was down by 0.6 hour to 41.3 hours. Factory overtime hours also dropped, by 0.4 hour to 4.3 hours. The size of these declines in factory hours may in part reflect the inability of seasonal adjustment to fully account for workers who were off during the reference week for Easter or Passover observances. (See table B-2.)

The index of aggregate weekly hours of private production or nonsupervisory workers on nonfarm payrolls was little changed at 131.8

(1982=100) in April. In contrast, the manufacturing index plummeted 1.6 percent to 105.2 as a result of the decline in both employment and weekly hours. (See table B-5.)

Hourly and Weekly Earnings (Establishment Survey Data)

Average hourly earnings of private production or nonsupervisory workers climbed 7 cents in April to $11.39 (seasonally adjusted). Average weekly earnings rose 0.9 percent to $394.09. Over the past year, average hourly earnings increased by 3.1 percent and average weekly earnings rose by 2.8 percent. (See table B-3.)