Transmission of material in this news release is embargoed until USDL-24-0148
8:30 a.m. (ET) Friday, February 2, 2024
Technical information:
Household data: (202) 691-6378 * cpsinfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/cps
Establishment data: (202) 691-6555 * cesinfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/ces
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 * PressOffice@bls.gov
THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION -- JANUARY 2024
Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 353,000 in January, and the unemployment rate
remained at 3.7 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains
occurred in professional and business services, health care, retail trade, and social
assistance. Employment declined in the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction
industry.
This news release presents statistics from two monthly surveys. The household survey
measures labor force status, including unemployment, by demographic characteristics.
The establishment survey measures nonfarm employment, hours, and earnings by industry.
For more information about the concepts and statistical methodology used in these two
surveys, see the Technical Note.
_________________________________________________________________________________________
| |
| Changes to The Employment Situation Data |
| |
| Establishment survey data have been revised as a result of the annual benchmarking |
| process and the updating of seasonal adjustment factors. Also, household survey data |
| for January 2024 reflect updated population estimates. See the notes at the end of this |
| news release for more information. |
|_________________________________________________________________________________________|
Household Survey Data
In January, the unemployment rate was 3.7 percent for the third month in a row, and
the number of unemployed people was little changed at 6.1 million. (See table A-1.
See the note at the end of this news release and tables B and C for more information
about annual population adjustments to the household survey estimates.)
Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (3.6 percent),
adult women (3.2 percent), teenagers (10.6 percent), Whites (3.4 percent), Blacks
(5.3 percent), Asians (2.9 percent), and Hispanics (5.0 percent) showed little or
no change in January. (See tables A-1, A-2, and A-3.)
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more), at 1.3
million, was little changed in January. The long-term unemployed accounted for
20.8 percent of all unemployed people. (See table A-12.)
The labor force participation rate, at 62.5 percent, was unchanged in January, and
the employment-population ratio, at 60.2 percent, was little changed. These measures
showed little or no change over the year. (See table A-1.)
In January, the number of people employed part time for economic reasons, at 4.4
million, changed little. 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. (See table A-8.)
The number of people not in the labor force who currently want a job, at 5.8
million, was little changed in January. 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. (See table A-1.)
Among those not in the labor force who wanted a job, the number of people
marginally attached to the labor force changed little at 1.7 million in January.
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,
increased to 452,000 in January. (See Summary table A.)
Establishment Survey Data
Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 353,000 in January, similar to the gain
of 333,000 in December. Payroll employment increased by an average of 255,000
per month in 2023. In January, job gains occurred in professional and business
services, health care, retail trade, and social assistance. Employment declined
in the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction industry. (See table B-1.
See the note at the end of this news release and table A for more information about
the annual benchmark process.)
Professional and business services added 74,000 jobs in January, considerably
higher than the average monthly increase of 14,000 jobs in 2023. Over the
month, professional, scientific, and technical services added 42,000 jobs.
Employment in temporary help services changed little over the month (+4,000)
but is down by 408,000 since reaching a peak in March 2022.
In January, employment in health care rose by 70,000, with gains in ambulatory
health care services (+33,000), hospitals (+20,000), and nursing and residential
care facilities (+17,000). Job growth in health care averaged 58,000 per month
in 2023.
Retail trade employment increased by 45,000 in January but has shown little net
growth since early 2023. Over the month, general merchandise retailers added
24,000 jobs, while electronics and appliance retailers lost 3,000 jobs.
Employment in social assistance rose by 30,000 in January, reflecting continued
growth in individual and family services (+22,000). Employment in social
assistance grew by an average of 23,000 per month in 2023.
Employment in manufacturing edged up in January (+23,000), with job gains in
chemical manufacturing (+7,000) and printing and related support activities
(+5,000). Manufacturing experienced little net job growth in 2023.
Government employment continued to trend up in January (+36,000), below the
average monthly gain of 57,000 in 2023. A job gain occurred in federal
government (+11,000), and employment continued to trend up in local government,
excluding education (+19,000).
In January, employment in information continued its upward trend (+15,000).
Employment in motion picture and sound recording industries increased by
12,000, while employment in telecommunications decreased by 3,000. Overall,
employment in the information industry is down by 76,000 since a recent peak
in November 2022.
Employment in the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction industry
declined by 5,000 in January, following little net change in 2023. Over the
month, a job loss in support activities for mining (-7,000) was partially
offset by a job gain in oil and gas extraction (+2,000).
Employment showed little change over the month in other major industries,
including construction, wholesale trade, transportation and warehousing,
financial activities, leisure and hospitality, and other services.
In January, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm
payrolls rose by 19 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $34.55. Over the past 12 months,
average hourly earnings have increased by 4.5 percent. In January, average
hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees rose
by 13 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $29.66. (See tables B-3 and B-8.)
The average workweek for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls decreased by
0.2 hour to 34.1 hours in January and is down by 0.5 hour over the year. In
manufacturing, the average workweek was unchanged at 39.8 hours, and overtime
edged down by 0.1 hour to 2.7 hours. The average workweek for production and
nonsupervisory employees on private nonfarm payrolls decreased by 0.2 hour to
33.5 hours. (See tables B-2 and B-7.)
The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for November was revised up by
9,000, from +173,000 to +182,000, and the change for December was revised up by
117,000, from +216,000 to +333,000. With these revisions, employment in November
and December combined is 126,000 higher than previously reported. (Monthly
revisions result from additional reports received from businesses and government
agencies since the last published estimates and from the recalculation of
seasonal factors. The annual benchmark process also contributed to the November
and December revisions.)
_____________
The Employment Situation for February is scheduled to be released on Friday,
March 8, 2024, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).
Revisions to Establishment Survey Data
In accordance with annual practice, the establishment survey data released
today have been benchmarked to reflect comprehensive counts of payroll jobs
for March 2023. These counts are derived principally from the Quarterly
Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), which counts jobs covered by the
Unemployment Insurance (UI) tax system. The benchmark process results in
revisions to not seasonally adjusted data from April 2022 forward; seasonally
adjusted data from January 2019 forward are subject to revision. In addition,
data for some series prior to 2019, both seasonally adjusted and unadjusted,
incorporate other revisions.
The seasonally adjusted total nonfarm employment level for March 2023 was
revised downward by 266,000. On a not seasonally adjusted basis, the total
nonfarm employment level for March 2023 was revised downward by 187,000, or
-0.1 percent. Not seasonally adjusted, the absolute average benchmark revision
over the past 10 years is 0.1 percent.
The over-the-year change in total nonfarm employment for March 2023 was revised
from +4,048,000 to +3,836,000 (seasonally adjusted). Table A presents revised
total nonfarm employment data on a seasonally adjusted basis from January to
December 2023.
All revised historical establishment survey data are available on the BLS website at
www.bls.gov/ces/data/home.htm. In addition, an article that discusses the benchmark
and post-benchmark revisions and other technical issues is available at
www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cesbmart.htm.
Table A. Revisions to total nonfarm employment, January to December 2023, seasonally
adjusted
(Numbers in thousands)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| |
| Level | Over-the-month change
|---------------------------------------------------------------------
Year and month | | As | | | As |
| As |previously | Difference| As |previously| Difference
| revised |published | | revised |published |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| | | | | |
2023 | | | | | |
| | | | | |
January......... | 154,773 | 155,007 | -234 | 482 | 472 | 10
February........ | 155,060 | 155,255 | -195 | 287 | 248 | 39
March........... | 155,206 | 155,472 | -266 | 146 | 217 | -71
April........... | 155,484 | 155,689 | -205 | 278 | 217 | 61
May............. | 155,787 | 155,970 | -183 | 303 | 281 | 22
June............ | 156,027 | 156,075 | -48 | 240 | 105 | 135
July............ | 156,211 | 156,311 | -100 | 184 | 236 | -52
August.......... | 156,421 | 156,476 | -55 | 210 | 165 | 45
September....... | 156,667 | 156,738 | -71 | 246 | 262 | -16
October......... | 156,832 | 156,843 | -11 | 165 | 105 | 60
November........ | 157,014 | 157,016 | -2 | 182 | 173 | 9
December(p)..... | 157,347 | 157,232 | 115 | 333 | 216 | 117
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(p) = preliminary
Adjustments to Population Estimates for the Household Survey
Effective with data for January 2024, updated population estimates were incorporated
into the household survey. Population estimates for the household survey are developed
by the U.S. Census Bureau. Each year, the Census Bureau updates the estimates to reflect
new information and assumptions about the growth of the population since the population
base year, typically the last decennial census. The change in population reflected in
the new estimates results from adjustments for net international migration, updated vital
statistics, and improvements in estimation methodology.
In accordance with usual practice, BLS will not revise the official household survey
estimates for December 2023 and earlier months. However, to show the impact of the
population adjustments, table B displays differences in selected December labor force
series based on the old and new population estimates.
The adjustments decreased the estimated size of the civilian noninstitutional population
in December by 625,000, the civilian labor force by 299,000, employment by 270,000,
and unemployment by 28,000. The number of people not in the labor force decreased by
326,000. The total unemployment rate, employment-population ratio, and labor force
participation rate were unaffected.
Data users are cautioned that these annual population adjustments can affect the
comparability of household data series over time. Table C shows the effect of the
introduction of new population estimates on the change in selected labor force measures
between December 2023 and January 2024.
Additional information on the population adjustments and their effects on national labor
force estimates is available at www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cps-pop-control-adjustments.pdf.
Population controls for veterans, which are derived from a Department of Veterans Affairs
population model and are updated periodically, did not change with the release of data
for January 2024.
Table B. Effect of the updated population controls on December 2023 estimates by sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, not seasonally adjusted
(Numbers in thousands)
| Category |
Total |
Men |
Women |
White |
Black or
African
Ameri-
can |
Asian |
Hispanic or
Latino
ethnicity |
Civilian noninstitutional population
| -625 |
-633 |
9 |
-487 |
-74 |
-39 |
194 |
Civilian labor force
| -299 |
-503 |
205 |
-198 |
-63 |
-13 |
101 |
Participation rate |
0 |
0 |
0.1 |
0.1 |
-0.1 |
0.1 |
-0.1 |
Employed
| -270 |
-477 |
207 |
-179 |
-56 |
-13 |
102 |
Employment-population ratio
| 0 |
0 |
0.2 |
0 |
-0.1 |
0 |
-0.1 |
Unemployed
| -28 |
-26 |
-2 |
-18 |
-7 |
-1 |
-1 |
Unemployment rate
| 0 |
-0.1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Not in labor force
| -326 |
-130 |
-196 |
-290 |
-12 |
-25 |
92 |
|
NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race.
|
Table C. December 2023-January 2024 changes in selected labor force measures, with adjustments for population control effects
(Numbers in thousands)
| Category |
Dec.-Jan.
change, as
published |
2024
population
control effect |
Dec.-Jan. change, after
removing the
population control
effect |
Civilian noninstitutional population
| -451 |
-625 |
174 |
Civilian labor force
| -175 |
-299 |
124 |
Participation rate |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Employed
| -31 |
-270 |
239 |
Employment-population ratio
| 0.1 |
0 |
0.1 |
Unemployed
| -144 |
-28 |
-116 |
Unemployment rate
| 0 |
0 |
0 |
Not in labor force
| -275 |
-326 |
51 |
|
NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
|
United States Department of Labor
