Employment Situation At a Glance
- Total Employment: 146.0 million
- Nonfarm Payroll Employment: 138.421 million
- Monthly Change: Up 166,000
- Previous Month Revision: Drop 10,000 Jobs
- Unemployed Persons: 7.2 million
- Unemployment Rate: 4.7%
- Change: None
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THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION: OCTOBER 2007
THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION: OCTOBER 2007
Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 166,000 in October, and the unemployment
rate was unchanged at 4.7 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S.
Department of Labor reported today. Job gains occurred in professional and
business services, health care, and leisure and hospitality. Manufacturing
employment continued to decline, and construction employment was little changed.
Unemployment (Household Survey Data)
The number of unemployed persons, at 7.2 million, was essentially unchanged
in October, and the unemployment rate held at 4.7 percent. A year earlier, the
number of unemployed persons was 6.7 million, and the jobless rate was 4.4
percent.
In October, unemployment rates for the major worker groups–adult men (4.3
percent), adult women (4.1 percent), teenagers (15.6 percent), whites (4.2
percent), blacks (8.5 percent), and Hispanics (5.6 percent)–showed little or
no change. The unemployment rate for Asians was 3.7 percent, not seasonally
adjusted. (See tables A-1, A-2, and A-3.)
Total Employment and the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)
Total employment, at 146.0 million, was about unchanged in October. The
employment-population ratio–62.7 percent–was little changed in October but
was down from its recent peak of 63.4 percent in December. The civilian labor
force, at 153.3 million in October, and the labor force participation rate, at
65.9 percent, were essentially unchanged from September. (See table A-1.)
Persons Not in the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)
Nearly 1.4 million persons (not seasonally adjusted) were marginally attached
to the labor force in October, about unchanged from a year earlier. These in-
dividuals wanted and were available to work and had looked for a job sometime
during the prior 12 months. They were not counted as unemployed because they
had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the
marginally attached, there were 320,000 discouraged workers in October, little
different from a year earlier. Discouraged workers were not currently looking
for work specifically because they believed no jobs were available for them.
The other 1.0 million persons marginally attached to the labor force in October
had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such
as school attendance and family responsibilities. (See table A-13.)
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| |
| Southern California Wildfires |
| |
| The Southern California wildfires and resulting evacuations had no dis- |
| cernable impact on the October payroll and household survey estimates. For |
| more information, see the Frequently Asked Questions section that begins on |
| page 5 of this release. |
| |
—————————————————————————–
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Table A. Major indicators of labor market activity, seasonally adjusted
(Numbers in thousands)
_______________________________________________________________________________
| | |
| Quarterly | |
| averages | Monthly data | Sept.-
Category |_________________|__________________________| Oct.
| | | | | | change
| II | III | Aug. | Sept. | Oct. |
| 2007 | 2007 | 2007 | 2007 | 2007 |
_________________________|________|________|________|________|________|________
|
HOUSEHOLD DATA | Labor force status
|_____________________________________________________
| | | | | |
Civilian labor force ….| 152,807| 153,195| 152,891| 153,464| 153,253| -211
Employment …………| 145,956| 146,054| 145,794| 146,257| 146,007| -250
Unemployment ……….| 6,851| 7,142| 7,097| 7,207| 7,245| 38
Not in labor force ……| 78,675| 79,015| 79,319| 78,997| 79,462| 465
|________|________|________|________|________|________
|
| Unemployment rates
|_____________________________________________________
| | | | | |
All workers ………….| 4.5| 4.7| 4.6| 4.7| 4.7| 0.0
Adult men ………….| 4.0| 4.2| 4.1| 4.2| 4.3| .1
Adult women ………..| 3.9| 4.1| 4.1| 4.0| 4.1| .1
Teenagers ………….| 15.6| 15.7| 16.1| 16.0| 15.6| -.4
White ……………..| 4.0| 4.2| 4.2| 4.2| 4.2| .0
Black or African | | | | | |
American …………| 8.4| 7.9| 7.7| 8.1| 8.5| .4
Hispanic or Latino | | | | | |
ethnicity ………..| 5.6| 5.7| 5.5| 5.7| 5.6| -.1
|________|________|________|________|________|________
|
ESTABLISHMENT DATA | Employment
|_____________________________________________________
| | | | | |
Nonfarm employment…….| 137,864|p138,160| 138,159|p138,255|p138,421| p166
Goods-producing (1)….| 22,447| p22,363| 22,349| p22,318| p22,294| p-24
Construction ……..| 7,665| p7,625| 7,620| p7,606| p7,601| p-5
Manufacturing …….| 14,064| p14,010| 14,001| p13,984| p13,963| p-21
Service-providing (1)..| 115,417|p115,797| 115,810|p115,937|p116,127| p190
Retail trade (2)…| 15,385| p15,383| 15,386| p15,373| p15,352| p-22
Professional and | | | | | |
business services .| 17,879| p17,939| 17,942| p17,965| p18,030| p65
Education and health | | | | | |
services ……….| 18,301| p18,473| 18,484| p18,513| p18,556| p43
Leisure and | | | | | |
hospitality …….| 13,524| p13,598| 13,589| p13,639| p13,695| p56
Government ……….| 22,233| p22,260| 22,273| p22,296| p22,332| p36
|________|________|________|________|________|________
|
| Hours of work (3)
|_____________________________________________________
| | | | | |
Total private ………..| 33.8| p33.8| 33.8| p33.8| p33.8| p0.0
Manufacturing ………| 41.2| p41.3| 41.4| p41.3| p41.2| p-.1
Overtime …………| 4.2| p4.1| 4.1| p4.1| p4.1| p.0
|________|________|________|________|________|________
|
| Indexes of aggregate weekly hours (2002=100)(3)
|_____________________________________________________
| | | | | |
Total private ………..| 107.4| p107.7| 107.7| p107.8| p107.9| p0.1
|________|________|________|________|________|________
|
| Earnings (3)
|_____________________________________________________
Average hourly earnings, | | | | | |
total private ………| $17.32| p$17.50| $17.50| p$17.55| p$17.58| p$0.03
Average weekly earnings, | | | | | |
total private ………| 586.11| p591.50| 591.50| p593.19| p594.20| p1.01
_________________________|________|________|________|________|________|________
1 Includes other industries, not shown separately.
2 Quarterly averages and the over-the-month change are calculated using
unrounded data.
3 Data relate to private production and nonsupervisory workers.
p = preliminary.
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Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey Data)
Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 166,000 in October to 138.4 million,
following increases of 93,000 in August and 96,000 in September. In October,
job growth continued in several service-providing industries, while employment
in manufacturing continued to trend downward. Construction employment was
little changed over the month. (See table B-1.)
Employment in professional and business services increased by 65,000 in
October and has risen by 368,000 over the year. In October, job gains con-
tinued in architectural and engineering services (7,000) and in management
and technical consulting services (8,000). The number of jobs in the employ-
ment services industry rose over the month (34,000), following a large decline
in September. Thus far in 2007, the industry has lost 156,000 jobs.
Health care employment continued to grow in October (34,000) with job gains
in ambulatory health care services and hospitals. Over the year, health care
has added 400,000 jobs.
Within leisure and hospitality, employment in food services and drinking
places continued to trend up in October (37,000). This industry has added
365,000 jobs over the year.
Manufacturing employment continued to trend down over the month (-21,000)
with declines in motor vehicles and parts (-6,000), computer and electronic
products (-4,000), and chemicals (-4,000). Manufacturing has lost 275,000
jobs since June 2006.
Overall, employment in construction was little changed in October. A job
gain in nonresidential specialty trade contractors (16,000) was offset by job
losses in residential building (-9,000) and in residential specialty trade
contractors (-13,000). Since its peak in September 2006, construction
employment has declined by 124,000.
Retail trade employment edged down in October. Among the component in-
dustries, employment in building material and garden supply stores continued
to trend down with a loss of 7,000 over the month. Employment in financial
activities was essentially unchanged in October, although the number of jobs
in its credit intermediation component (which includes mortgage lending and
related activities) continued to trend down.
Weekly Hours (Establishment Survey Data)
In October, the average workweek for production and nonsupervisory workers
on private nonfarm payrolls was unchanged at 33.8 hours, seasonally adjusted.
The manufacturing workweek decreased by 0.1 hour to 41.2 hours, and factory
overtime was unchanged at 4.1 hours over the month. (See table B-2.)
The index of aggregate weekly hours of production and nonsupervisory workers
on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 0.1 percent in October to 107.9 (2002=100).
The manufacturing index decreased by 0.4 percent to 95.0. (See table B-5.)
- 4 -
Hourly and Weekly Earnings (Establishment Survey Data)
Average hourly earnings of production and nonsupervisory workers on private
nonfarm payrolls increased by 3 cents, or 0.2 percent, in October to $17.58,
seasonally adjusted. Average weekly earnings also grew by 0.2 percent over the
month, to $594.20. Over the year, average hourly earnings rose by 3.8 percent,
and average weekly earnings rose by 3.5 percent. (See table B-3.)
______________________________
Statement of
Philip L. Rones
Acting Commissioner
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Friday, November 2, 2007
Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 166,000 in October, and
the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.7 percent. Job gains
continued in professional and business services, food services,
and health care. Manufacturing employment continued to decline,
while construction employment was little changed over the month.
Before examining October’s developments in detail, it should
be noted that the wildfires and associated evacuations in
Southern California had no discernable effect on the data in this
report. The household survey reference period preceded the
wildfires and evacuations, as did the reference period for most
employers in the establishment survey. Household survey
interviews were largely completed before the wildfires began, and
response rates for the establishment survey were within the
normal range for the affected areas.
In October, employment rose by 65,000 in professional and
business services; the industry has added 368,000 jobs over the
year. The October employment gains were widespread, with notable
increases in architectural and engineering services and in
management and technical consulting. Employment services added
34,000 jobs over the month, offsetting a decline of similar
magnitude in September. Thus far this year, the industry has
lost 156,000 jobs.
Food services and drinking places added 37,000 jobs in
October. Employment in the industry has risen by 365,000 over
the year. Health care employment also continued to grow,
increasing by 34,000 in October and by 400,000 over the year.
The over-the-month gains occurred in ambulatory health care
services, which includes offices of physicians and home health
care services, and in hospitals. Employment also continued to
trend up in wholesale trade.
Construction employment was little changed in October. Over
the month, a job gain in nonresidential specialty trade
contracting was offset by losses in the residential components of
construction. Construction employment has fallen by 124,000
since its peak in September 2006, driven by losses in residential
construction.
Among other housing-related industries, employment continued
its downward trend in October in credit intermediation–the
component of the financial activities sector that includes
mortgage lending and related activities. Employment in credit
intermediation has fallen by 56,000 since its peak in February.
Within retail trade, building supply stores lost 7,000 jobs in
October; employment in the industry declined by 47,000 over the
year.
Manufacturing employment continued to fall in October
(-21,000), reflecting widespread declines. Factory job losses
totaled 203,000 over the year. Average weekly hours in the
manufacturing sector edged down over the month to 41.2 hours, and
factory overtime was unchanged at 4.1 hours per week.
Average hourly earnings for private production and
nonsupervisory workers were up 3 cents to $17.58 in October.
Over the year, average hourly earnings increased by 3.8 percent.
Most labor market measures from the household survey showed
little or no change over the month. The number of unemployed
persons, at 7.2 million, was essentially unchanged, and the
unemployment rate remained at 4.7 percent. The employment-
population ratio was 62.7 percent in October, down from its
recent peak of 63.4 percent last December. Over the period, most
of the decline occurred among adult men and teenagers.
In summary, nonfarm payroll employment increased by 166,000
in October, and the unemployment rate held at 4.7 percent.
Employment Situation October 2007 [PDF]
Employment Situation October 2007 [Text]
Commissioners Statement on Employment Situation October 2007 [PDF]
Commissioners Statement on Employment Situation October 2007 [Text]
Source: Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics
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