Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 275,000 in February; unemployment rate increased to 3.9 percent
The unemployment rate rose by 0.2 percentage point to 3.9 percent in February, and the number of unemployed people increased by 334,000 to 6.5 million. A year earlier, the jobless rate was 3.6 percent, and the number of unemployed people was 6.0 million.
The number of people employed part time for economic reasons, at 4.4 million, changed little in February. These individuals, who would have preferred full-time employment, were working part time because their hours had been reduced or they were unable to find full-time jobs.
In February, the number of people not in the labor force who currently want a job, at 5.7 million, was little changed. These individuals were not counted as unemployed because they were not actively looking for work during the 4 weeks preceding the survey or were unavailable to take a job.
Among those not in the labor force who wanted a job, the number of people marginally attached to the labor force changed little at 1.6 million in February. These individuals wanted and were available for work and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months but had not looked for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. The number of discouraged workers, a subset of the marginally attached who believed that no jobs were available for them, was little changed at 425,000 in February.
INDUSTRY FOCUS
- Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 275,000 in February, above the average monthly gain of 230,000 over the prior 12 months. In February, job gains occurred in health care, in government, in food services and drinking places, in social assistance, and in transportation and warehousing.
- Health care added 67,000 jobs in February, above the average monthly gain of 58,000 over the prior 12 months. In February, job growth continued in ambulatory health care services (+28,000), hospitals (+28,000), and nursing and residential care facilities (+11,000).
- Government employment rose by 52,000 in February, about the same as the prior 12-month average gain (+53,000). Over the month, employment continued to trend up in local government, excluding education (+26,000) and federal government (+9,000).
- Employment in food services and drinking places increased by 42,000 in February, after changing little over the prior 3 months.
- Social assistance added 24,000 jobs in February, about the same as the prior 12-month average gain of 23,000. Over the month, job growth continued in individual and family services (+19,000).
- Employment in transportation and warehousing rose by 20,000 in February. Couriers and messengers added 17,000 jobs, after losing 70,000 jobs over the prior 3 months. In February, job growth also occurred in air transportation (+4,000), while warehousing and storage lost 7,000 jobs. Employment in the transportation and warehousing industry is down by 144,000 since reaching a peak in July 2022.
- In February, employment continued to trend up in construction (+23,000), in line with the average monthly gain of 18,000 over the prior 12 months. Over the month, heavy and civil engineering construction added 13,000 jobs.
- Retail trade employment changed little in February (+19,000) and has shown little net change over the year. Over the month, job gains in general merchandise retailers (+17,000); health and personal care retailers (+6,000); and automotive parts, accessories, and tire retailers (+5,000) were partially offset by job losses in building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers (-6,000) and electronics and appliance retailers (-2,000).
- Employment showed little change over the month in other major industries, including mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction; manufacturing; wholesale trade; information; financial activities; professional and business services; and other services.