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Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 162,000 in August, higher than both the previous month’s increase of 21,000 and the average monthly gain of 31,000 over the prior 12 months. In August, employment increased in food services and drinking places and in local government education. The information industry lost jobs.

Unemployment rates were lower in July 2026 than a year earlier in 241 of the 387 metropolitan areas, higher in 128 areas, and unchanged in 18 areas. A total of 22 areas had jobless rates of less than 3.0 percent, and 7 areas had rates of at least 8.0 percent.

From March 2025 to March 2026, employment increased in 151 of the 376 largest U.S. counties. Licking, Ohio (in the Columbus metropolitan area), had the largest over-the-year increase in employment, with a gain of 3.6 percent. Within Licking, the largest employment increase occurred in trade, transportation, and utilities. In Monterey, California (Salinas metropolitan area), employment increased 3.4 percent. Employment increased 2.9 percent in Baldwin, Alabama (Daphne-Fairhope-Foley metropolitan area) and 2.8 percent in Loudoun, Virginia (Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area).

From January 2023 through December 2025, 3.3 million workers were displaced from jobs they had held for at least 3 years. This was up by 746,000 workers from the prior survey period covering January 2021 to December 2023. Known as long-tenured displaced workers, 66.1 percent of these individuals were reemployed when surveyed in January 2026, 18.3 percent were unemployed, and 15.7 percent were not in the labor force.