Economy Gains 235,000 Jobs in August; Unemployment Down to 5.2%

Economy Gains 235,000 Jobs in August; Unemployment Down to 5.2%

BLS

The U.S. economy gained 235,000 jobs in August, and the unemployment rate declined to 5.2%, according to figures released Friday morning by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

In response to the August job numbers, AFL-CIO Chief Economist William Spriggs tweeted:

Last month’s biggest job gains were in professional and business services (+74,000), transportation and warehousing (+53,000), education (+40,000), manufacturing (+37,000), other services (+37,000), information (+17,000), financial activities (+16,000) and mining (+6,000), while retail trade (-29,000), state workers (-25,000) and local education (-5,700) saw losses. In August, employment showed little change in other major industries, including leisure and hospitality, construction, wholesale trade and health care. 

Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (5.1%) and White Americans (4.5%) declined in August, while the rate for teenagers (11.2%) increased. The jobless rates for Black Americans (8.8%), Hispanics (6.4%), adult women (4.8%) and Asian Americans (4.6%) showed little change over the month.

The number of long-term unemployed workers (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) decreased in August and accounted for 37.4% of the total unemployed.

Kenneth Quinnell
Fri, 09/03/2021 – 09:31

Updated: September 19, 2021 — 12:20 pm