04.06.2020
Total nonfarm payroll employment fell by 701000 in March and the unemployment rate rose to 4.4 percent the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The changes in these measures reflect the effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and efforts to contain it. Employment in leisure and hospitality fell by 459000 mainly in food services and drinking places. Notable declines also occurred in health care and social assistance professional and business services retail trade and construction.
Employment in health care and social assistance increased by 57000 in February. Health care added 32000 jobs with gains in offices of physicians (+10000) home health care services (+10000) and hospitals (+8000). Employment in social assistance increased by 25000 with a majority of the gain in individual and family services (+18000). Over the past 12 months employment increased by 368000 in health care and by 191000 in social assistance. Food services and drinking places added 53000 jobs in February. Employment in the industry has increased by 252000 over the past 7 months following a lull in job growth earlier in 2019.
In March employment in leisure and hospitality fell by 459000. Most of the decline occurred in food services and drinking places (-417000); this employment decline nearly offset gains over the previous 2 years. Employment in the accommodation industry also declined in March (-29000). Employment in health care and social assistance fell by 61000 in March. Health care employment declined by 43000 with job losses in offices of dentists (-17000) offices of physicians (-12000) and offices of other health care practitioners (-7000). Over the prior 12 months health care employment had grown by 374000. In March social assistance saw an employment decline of 19000 reflecting a job loss in child day care services (-19000). Over the prior 12 months social assistance added 193000 jobs.
Employment in professional and business services decreased by 52000 in March with the decline concentrated in temporary help services (-50000). Employment also decreased in travel arrangement and reservation services (-7000). In March employment in retail trade declined by 46000. Job losses occurred in clothing and clothing accessories stores (-16000); furniture stores (-10000); and sporting goods hobby book and music stores (-9000). General merchandise stores gained 10000 jobs. Employment decreased over the month in construction (-29000). In March nonresidential building (-11000) and heavy and civil engineering construction (-10000) lost jobs. Construction employment had increased by 211000 over the prior 12 months. Employment in the other services industry declined by 24000 in March with about half of the loss occurring in personal and laundry services (-13000). Over the prior 12 months other services had added 89000 jobs. Mining lost 6000 jobs in March with much of the decline occurring in support activities for mining (-5000). Since a recent peak in January 2019 mining employment has declined by 42000.
In March manufacturing employment edged down (-18000). Over the past 12 months employment in the industry has shown little net change. Federal government employment rose by 18000 in March reflecting the hiring of 17000 workers for the 2020 Census. Employment in other major industries including wholesale trade transportation and warehousing information and financial activities changed little over the month.
In March average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 11 cents to $28.62. Over the past 12 months average hourly earnings have increased by 3.1 percent. Average hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees increased by 10 cents to $24.07 in March.
The full BLS press release on the March 2020 employment situation can be accessed in the .pdf below.
The next employment situation report for April 2020 is scheduled to be released on Friday May 8 2020.
