September 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 continued to trend upward in September, increasing by 96,000, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.4 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Over the prior 3 months, payroll employment rose by 103,000 on average. In September, modest job gains occurred in a few service-providing industries.

Unemployment (Household Survey Data)

The number of unemployed persons was unchanged at 8.0 million in September, and the unemployment rate held at 5.4 percent, seasonally adjusted. The jobless rate is down from its most recent high of 6.3 percent in June 2003; most of this decline occurred in the second half of last year.

The jobless rates for the major worker groups--adult men (5.0 percent), adult women (4.7 percent), teenagers (16.6 percent), whites (4.7 percent), blacks (10.3 percent), and Hispanics or Latinos (7.1 percent)--showed little or no change in September. The unemployment rate for Asians was 4.3 percent, not seasonally ad- justed. (See tables A-1, A-2, and A-3.)

Total Employment and the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)

Total employment was about unchanged in September at 139.5 million, and the employment-population ratio--the proportion of the population age 16 and over with jobs--was little changed at 62.3 percent. Over the month, the civilian labor force was essentially unchanged at 147.5 million. The labor force participation rate was 65.9 percent in September and has been at or near that level since late last year. (See table A-1.)

About 7.7 million persons (not seasonally adjusted) held more than one job in September. These multiple jobholders represented 5.5 percent of total em- ployment, compared with 5.2 percent a year earlier. (See table A-13.)

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 September, about the same as a year earlier. (Data are not seasonally 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 412,000 discouraged workers in September, little changed from a year earlier. Discouraged workers, a subset of the mar- ginally 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 respon- sibilities. (See table A-13.)

Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey Data)

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 96,000 in September to 131.6 million, seasonally adjusted. Payroll employment has risen by 1.8 million since reaching a trough in August 2003, with about half of the gain (885,000) occur- ring in March, April, and May. Since May, payroll job gains have totaled 405,000. Employment increases in September occurred in financial activities, professional and technical services, and temporary help services. (See table B-1.)

Within the service-providing sector, employment in financial activities increased by 26,000 over the month and by 108,000 since the beginning of the year. Rental and leasing added 7,000 jobs in September, following a similar- sized increase in August. Employment in finance and insurance edged up in September, and real estate continued to add jobs.

Employment in professional and technical services grew by 24,000 in Septem- ber. Since August 2003, this industry has added 205,000 jobs. Temporary help services employment was up by 33,000 in September, following 2 months of smaller increases. Employment in management of companies and enterprises fell by 11,000 over the month, following a smaller decline in August.

Employment in health care and social assistance was little changed in Sep- tember. Over the prior 12 months, job gains in this industry averaged 24,000 a month. Within the industry, child day care services lost 14,000 jobs in Sep- tember. Employment in doctors' offices rose by 8,000.

The information industry continued to shed jobs in September (-12,000). Most of the over-the-month job loss occurred in telecommunications (-9,000); employment in this industry is down by 302,000 since its most recent peak in March 2001.

Within the goods-producing sector, manufacturing employment edged down in September (-18,000), with small job losses occurring throughout the durable and nondurable goods components of the industry. Manufacturing had added 88,000 jobs in the previous 7 months, with most of the gains registered from March through May. Construction employment was about unchanged in September and has shown little growth since May.

Weekly Hours (Establishment Survey Data)

The average workweek for production or nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls was unchanged in September at 33.8 hours, seasonally adjusted. The manufacturing workweek fell by 0.1 hour to 40.8 hours, and factory overtime was unchanged at 4.6 hours. (See table B-2.)

The index of aggregate weekly hours of production or nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 0.1 percent in September to 100.7 (2002=100). The manufacturing index fell by 0.4 percent to 94.9. (See table B-5.)

Hourly and Weekly Earnings (Establishment Survey Data)

Average hourly earnings of production or nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 3 cents in September to $15.78, seasonally adjusted. Average weekly earnings increased by 0.2 percent over the month to $533.36. Over the year, average hourly earnings increased by 2.4 percent, and average weekly earnings grew by 3.0 percent. (See table B-3.)