March 2005 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.

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 110,000 in March, and the unemployment rate declined to 5.2 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Several industries added jobs over the month, including construction, mining, health care, and wholesale trade.

Unemployment (Household Survey Data)

Both the number of unemployed persons, 7.7 million, and the unemployment rate, 5.2 percent, decreased in March. The jobless rate was down from 5.7 per- cent a year earlier. Over the month, the unemployment rates for adult men (4.6 percent), whites (4.4 percent), and Hispanics or Latinos (5.7 percent) declined. The unemployment rates for adult women (4.5 percent), teenagers (16.9 percent), and blacks or African Americans (10.3 percent) were little changed. The jobless rate for Asians was 3.9 percent, not seasonally adjusted. (See tables A-1, A-2, and A-3.)

In March, persons who had been unemployed for 27 weeks or more accounted for 21.5 percent of the unemployed, down from 23.8 percent a year earlier. Job losers made up 49.1 percent of the unemployed in March, down from 53.5 percent a year earlier. (See tables A-8 and A-9.)

Total Employment and the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)

Total employment and the employment-population ratio were about unchanged in March at 140.5 million and 62.4 percent, respectively. The civilian labor force participation rate was 65.8 percent for the third straight month. (See table A-1.)

Persons Not in the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)

There were 1.6 million persons who were marginally attached to the labor force in March, 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. The number of discouraged workers, at 480,000 in March, was little changed from 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 attendance or family responsi- bilities. (See table A-13.)

Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey Data)

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 110,000 in March to 132.9 million, seasonally adjusted. Industries with over-the-month job gains in- cluded construction, mining, health care, and wholesale trade. Payroll emp- loyment has risen by 2.1 million over the year and by 3.1 million since its most recent trough in May 2003. (See table B-1.)

Within the goods-producing sector, construction employment rose by 26,000 in March, following a gain of similar magnitude in February. This industry has added 489,000 jobs since its most recent low in March 2003. Residential building and residential specialty trade contractors together accounted for 70 percent of the 2-year gain. Employment rose in mining for the fifth con- secutive month. This industry has added 22,000 jobs since October 2004, mainly in support services for oil and gas operations.

Manufacturing employment was little changed (-8,000) in March. Small job losses occurred in textile mills (-2,000) and apparel (-5,000), as both in- dustries continued to experience long-term job declines. Since last summer, manufacturing employment has declined slightly.

In the service-providing sector, health care added 16,000 jobs in March, with hospitals accounting for half of the growth. Over the year, health care employment has increased by 243,000.

Wholesale trade employment was up by 15,000 over the month, with gains in both its durable and nondurable components. Since its most recent low in August 2003, the industry has added 112,000 jobs.

Employment in professional and business services continued to trend upward in March (27,000). Over the year, monthly job gains in this broad industry category have averaged 51,000. Within professional and business services, temporary help employment was about unchanged in March, following an increase of 26,000 in February.

Elsewhere among service-providing industries, employment continued to trend up in food services and in credit intermediation. Following strong growth in February, retail trade employment was about unchanged in March. The industry has added 89,000 jobs over the year. In March, job losses continued in air transportation; this industry has lost 127,000 jobs since its peak in April 2001.

Weekly Hours (Establishment Survey Data)

The average workweek for production or nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls was unchanged at 33.7 hours in March, seasonally adjusted. The manufacturing workweek declined by 0.1 hour to 40.5 hours. Manufacturing overtime fell by 0.2 hour over the month to 4.4 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 March to 101.8 (2002=100). The manufacturing index was down by 0.2 percent over the month to 93.8. (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 4 cents in March to $15.95, seasonally adjusted. Average weekly earnings increased by 0.3 percent over the month to $537.52. Over the year, average hourly earnings and average weekly earnings each grew by 2.6 percent. (See table B-3.)