August 2004 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 by 144,000 in August, and the unemployment rate was little changed at 5.4 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Over the month, job growth occurred in several service-providing industries.

Unemployment (Household Survey Data)

Both the number of unemployed persons, 8.0 million, and the unemployment rate, 5.4 percent, were little changed from July to August. The jobless rate is down from its recent high of 6.3 percent in June 2003; most of this decline occurred in the second half of last year. In August, the unemployment rates for the major worker groups--adult men (5.0 percent), adult women (4.7 percent), teenagers (17.0 percent), whites (4.7 percent), blacks (10.4 percent), and Hispanics or Latinos (6.9 percent)--showed little change over the month. The unemployment rate for Asians was 3.6 percent in August, not seasonally adjusted. (See tables A-1, A-2, and A-3.)

Total Employment and the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)

Total employment held at 139.7 million in August, and the employment-pop- ulation ratio--the proportion of the population age 16 and over with jobs-- was essentially unchanged at 62.4 percent. The civilian labor force was about unchanged over the month at 147.7 million. After rising in July, the labor force participation rate edged down to its June level of 66.0 percent. (See table A-1.)

Persons Not in the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)

The number of persons who were marginally attached to the labor force was 1.6 million in August, about the same as a year earlier. (Data are not sea- sonally adjusted.) These individuals wanted and were available to work and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed, however, because they did not actively search for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. There were 534,000 discouraged workers in August, also about the same as a year earlier. Discouraged workers, a subset of the marginally attached, were not currently looking for work specifically because they believed no jobs were available for them. The other 1.1 million marginally attached had not searched for work for reasons such as school or family responsibilities. (See table A-13.)

Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey Data)

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 144,000 in August to 131.5 million, seasonally adjusted. Over the year, payroll employment has risen by 1.7 million, with slightly more than half the gain (885,000) occurring from March through May of this year. Since May, nonfarm employment has risen by 313,000, as revised. In August, there were job gains in health care and so- cial assistance, financial activities, and professional and technical services. (See table B-1.)

Within the service-providing sector, health care and social assistance continued to add jobs, with an increase of 42,000 in August. Over the year, employment in this industry has risen by 307,000. In August, employment rose in ambulatory health care services (+11,000), which includes doctors' offices and home health care services, and in hospitals (+8,000). Social assistance added 20,000 jobs, following no net change over the prior 3 months.

Employment in financial activities increased by 18,000 in August, more than offsetting an employment decline in July. Rental and leasing services added 7,000 jobs over the month, and securities, commodity contracts, and investments added 4,000. Over the year, securities employment has increased by 32,000.

Professional and technical services added 22,000 jobs over the month. Within this industry, employment rose in computer systems design and related services (+9,000); over the year, computer systems design has added 36,000 jobs. Employment in temporary help services was little changed in August for the third consecutive month.

Within the information industry, employment continued to trend down in telecommunications. Since its most recent peak in March 2001, the tele- communications industry has lost 293,000 jobs, or 22 percent of its employ- ment.

In the goods-producing sector, employment in manufacturing edged up (+22,000) in August. Employment in transportation equipment rebounded (+28,000) from a loss in the previous month, but this increase mostly reflected auto workers re- turning to work from the larger-than-usual annual retooling shutdowns in July. Since January, manufacturing has added 107,000 jobs, due to growth in its dur- able goods component. Construction employment edged up in August, following 2 months of little change.

Weekly Hours (Establishment Survey Data)

The average workweek for production or nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls was unchanged in August at 33.8 hours, seasonally adjusted. The manufacturing workweek (40.9 hours) and manufacturing overtime (4.6 hours) also were unchanged over the month. (See table B-2.)

The index of aggregate weekly hours of production or nonsupervisory work- ers on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 0.2 percent in August to 100.6 (2002=100). The manufacturing index rose by 0.3 percent to 95.5. (See table B-5.)

Hourly and Weekly Earnings (Establishment Survey Data)

Average hourly earnings of production or nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 5 cents in August to $15.77, seasonally adjusted. Average weekly earnings increased by 0.3 percent over the month to $533.03. Over the year, average hourly earnings increased by 2.3 percent, and average weekly earnings grew by 2.9 percent. (See table B-3.)