TEXT

 
 
                               FOR DELIVERY: 9:30 A.M., E.D.T.
                               FRIDAY, JULY 7, 1995
 
 
 
   ___________________________________________________________
   Advance copies of this statement are made available to the
   press under lock-up conditions with the explicit
   understanding that the data are embargoed until 8:30 a.m.
   Eastern time.  ____________________________________________
 
                           Statement of
 
                       Katharine G. Abraham
                           Commissioner
                    Bureau of Labor Statistics
 
                           July 7, 1995
 
 
 
 
        Good morning.  I would like to take this opportunity to
 
   offer a few comments to supplement our analysis of the
 
   employment and unemployment data released this morning.
 
        Nonfarm payroll employment rose moderately in June, and
 
   the unemployment rate was virtually unchanged.  Led by
 
   increases in services and construction, the number of
 
   payroll jobs increased by 215,000 over the month, after
 
   showing little change in the prior 2 months.  In
 
   manufacturing, however, employment continued to decline.
 
   The unemployment rate in June was 5.6 percent; after falling
 
   sharply during 1994, the rate has fluctuated between 5.4 and
 
   5.8 percent thus far this year.
 
        About half of the June payroll job gain occurred in the
 
   services industry.  Following 2 months of weakness, the
 
   increase of 114,000 in services was back in line with the
 
   average growth trend for the industry during the current
 
 
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   expansion.  Within services, the largest increase was in
 
   amusements and recreation, where the number of jobs has
 
   increased by nearly 10 percent so far this year.  Job growth
 
   also continued at a fairly brisk pace in engineering and
 
   management services.  Employment picked up in health
 
   services, following 2 months of relatively slow growth.  In
 
   contrast, there was only a modest job gain in business
 
   services.  Gains in business services had been a major
 
   source of growth earlier in the expansion, but job growth in
 
   the industry has slowed since February.  The number of jobs
 
   in its help supply component was about unchanged for the
 
   second straight month and was down by 57,000 since February.
 
        There were small increases elsewhere in the service-
 
   producing sector, including a pickup of 18,000 jobs in the
 
   transportation and public utilities division, primarily
 
   reflecting gains in trucking and air transportation.
 
   Relatively weak over-the-month increases occurred in both
 
   wholesale and retail trade.
 
        Construction employment also rose in June, following 2
 
   months of job losses.  Drier weather, relative to May,
 
   contributed to the June gain.
 
        On the negative side, factory employment continued to
 
   decline, with widespread losses totaling 104,000 over the
 
   past 3 months.  Only the industrial machinery and
 
   electronics industries within manufacturing have continued
 
   to grow over this period.  The factory workweek edged up by
 
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   a tenth of an hour in June, returning to the April level of
 
   41.5 hours.  Factory hours had declined by seven-tenths of
 
   an hour between January and April.  Factory overtime
 
   continued to edge down in June and also is seven-tenths of
 
   an hour below its January level.
 
        Turning to the data from the household survey, the
 
   jobless rate was about unchanged at 5.6 percent, with no
 
   especially noteworthy changes in any of the major
 
   demographic groups.  The number of unemployed persons stood
 
   at 7.4 million.
 
        In addition to those classified as unemployed, another
 
   1.6 million persons (not seasonally adjusted) wanted a job
 
   and were available for work in June.  These persons were not
 
   included among the unemployed, however, because, for any of
 
   a range of reasons, they were no longer actively looking for
 
   jobs.  Of the 1.6 million, 364,000 were counted as
 
   discouraged workers, persons who gave up looking for work
 
   specifically because they believed their job prospects were
 
   poor.  Those working part time involuntarily, another group
 
   experiencing job market problems, totaled 4.4 million in
 
   June (seasonally adjusted).
 
        In summary, the labor market appeared stronger in June
 
   than in the prior 2 months.  The number of payroll jobs rose
 
   by 215,000, and the unemployment rate was essentially
 
   unchanged at 5.6 percent.  Employment in construction and
 
 
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   services rose, but the number of factory jobs declined for
 
   the third month in a row.
 
 
        My colleagues and I now will be happy to answer any
 
   questions you may have.