FOR DELIVERY: 9:30 A.M., E.S.T.
                            FRIDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1997


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 Standard Time.

Statement of

Katharine G. Abraham
Commissioner
Bureau of Labor Statistics

Friday, December 5, 1997



	Good morning.  I am pleased to have this opportunity 
to comment on the employment and unemployment data that we 
released this morning.  
Employment rose sharply in November, and the 
unemployment rate was little changed at 4.6 percent.
The number of payroll jobs as measured by our 
establishment survey grew by 404,000 over the month.  Gains 
were widespread in the private sector with especially large 
increases occurring in services, retail trade, and 
manufacturing.  In the goods-producing sector, construction 
employment rose by 29,000, despite unusually cold weather 
during the November survey period.  Manufacturing added 
44,000 jobs, the third month out of the last four in which 
it has had a large increase.  More than 200,000 
manufacturing jobs have been added since the industry’s 
last employment trough in September 1996.  Electronic 
components, industrial machinery, and aircraft and parts  
contributed the most to this increase, and continued to add 
jobs in November.  Over-the-month increases also were 
registered in auto manufacturing, food processing, and 
printing and publishing. 
Services industry employment rose by 180,000; close to 
a third of this increase was in help supply services.  Two 
relatively small industries continued their rapid 
expansion:  engineering and management services grew by 
15,000 jobs, and computer and data processing services 
added 13,000 jobs.  Elsewhere, health services added 21,000 
jobs, largely in doctors’ offices and hospitals.  
Employment in amusement and recreation services showed its 
first large increase since July.
Retail employment grew by 105,000 as strong holiday 
hiring boosted employment in department stores and in 
miscellaneous retail establishments, which include gift 
shops, book stores, and catalogue sales, among other types 
of retailers.  Eating and drinking places had its first 
large increase since July.  Furniture and home furnishing 
stores also contributed to the retail employment rise, as 
did auto dealers and service stations.  
In other industries, wholesale trade added 24,000 
jobs, mostly in durable goods.  This was the second 
straight month of stronger-than-average wholesale trade 
employment gains, mirroring strength in manufacturing.  
Finance, insurance, and real estate payrolls added 19,000 
jobs.  Gains in finance continued to outpace those in the 
other two components of this grouping.  Employment in 
government was little changed overall.  A decline of 12,000  
in Federal nonpostal employment followed an unusual 
increase (on a seasonally adjusted basis) of about the same 
magnitude in October.
Average hourly earnings of production or 
nonsupervisory workers posted a 7-cent increase in 
November.  Over the last 3 months, average hourly earnings 
have grown by 16 cents.  Over the year, hourly earnings 
have increased by 4.1 percent.  Average weekly hours grew 
by 0.3 hour in November to 34.8 hours.   
	Turning to data from the household survey, the 
unemployment rate was little changed over the month at 4.6 
percent.  It had been 4.7 percent in October, and 4.9 
percent in September.  The unemployment rate for adult men 
declined to 3.8 percent in November, and the rates for 
whites and Hispanics also fell.  The rate for adult women, 
which had fallen from 4.4 percent in September to 4.0 
percent in October, was unchanged in November.  
	Civilian employment, which had barely risen between 
May and October, jumped by 671,000 in November to 130.6 
million.  The employment-to-population ratio, the percent 
of the population that is employed, rose to a record 64.0 
percent.   
In summary, employment rose sharply in November, with 
gains that were widespread across most of the private 
sector.  Hourly earnings continued to increase.  The 
unemployment rate, at 4.6 percent, was at the lowest level 
in nearly a quarter of a century.

My colleagues and I now would be glad to respond to 
your questions. 


 
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