This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/apr/03/us-economy-jobs-march
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| US economy adds 126,000 jobs in March but unemployment sticks at 5.5% | |
| (34 minutes later) | |
| The US economy added 126,000 jobs in March - but the unemployment rate stayed unchanged at 5.5%. | |
| The March jobs report failed expectations; although economists expected the unemployment rate to hold steady at 5.5%, which it did, they had predicted that the non-farm payroll would grow by 245,000 jobs. | |
| The disappointing jobs report comes after what was 12 straight months of the US economy adding over 200,000 jobs a month. | The disappointing jobs report comes after what was 12 straight months of the US economy adding over 200,000 jobs a month. |
| The Labor Department also revised its jobs data from January and February. January was revised down from 239,000 to 201,000, and the change for February was revised down from 295,000 to 264,000. | The Labor Department also revised its jobs data from January and February. January was revised down from 239,000 to 201,000, and the change for February was revised down from 295,000 to 264,000. |
| “With these revisions, employment gains in January and February combined were 69,000 less than previously reported. Over the past three months, job gains have averaged 197,000 per month,” according to the report. | “With these revisions, employment gains in January and February combined were 69,000 less than previously reported. Over the past three months, job gains have averaged 197,000 per month,” according to the report. |
| The number of unemployed Americans remained little changed at 8.6 million. | The number of unemployed Americans remained little changed at 8.6 million. |
| In 2014, the US added 3.1m jobs - or 260,000 jobs per month. Last year was the best year for job growth since 1999. | In 2014, the US added 3.1m jobs - or 260,000 jobs per month. Last year was the best year for job growth since 1999. |
| The slowdown in hiring was in part due to the harsh winter weather. Manufacturing, construction and government sectors all saw a slight drop in workers. | |
| While job growth did slow down in March, the US labor market was “in good shape and getting better”, according to PNC economists. They predicted that this year’s monthly job growth would average 250,000 jobs a month and that the unemployment rate would drop to 5% by the end of 2015. | While job growth did slow down in March, the US labor market was “in good shape and getting better”, according to PNC economists. They predicted that this year’s monthly job growth would average 250,000 jobs a month and that the unemployment rate would drop to 5% by the end of 2015. |
| “This is well above what is needed to keep up with normal growth in the labor force,” they wrote. “Solid job growth this year should translate to higher wage gains as firms need to raise pay to attract workers; this can be seen in the recent announcements from Walmart and Target that they will be raising workers wages.” | “This is well above what is needed to keep up with normal growth in the labor force,” they wrote. “Solid job growth this year should translate to higher wage gains as firms need to raise pay to attract workers; this can be seen in the recent announcements from Walmart and Target that they will be raising workers wages.” |
| McDonald’s, too, has announced that it will raise wages for 90,000 of its employees. | McDonald’s, too, has announced that it will raise wages for 90,000 of its employees. |
| In March, average hourly earnings rose to $24.86. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have risen by 2.1%. | |
| “Our economy has grown since the crisis, but if you look at what’s happened to middle-class folks, their wages, their incomes, just haven’t gone up that much. A lot of folks are still struggling to get by,” Barack Obama said Thursday while in Louisville, Kentucky. | “Our economy has grown since the crisis, but if you look at what’s happened to middle-class folks, their wages, their incomes, just haven’t gone up that much. A lot of folks are still struggling to get by,” Barack Obama said Thursday while in Louisville, Kentucky. |
| During his speech, Obama touted the 12 million new jobs created in the US over the last five years. He attacked Republicans for their budget proposals, which he said would cut job training for 2.2 million people. | During his speech, Obama touted the 12 million new jobs created in the US over the last five years. He attacked Republicans for their budget proposals, which he said would cut job training for 2.2 million people. |
| “That’s just not the right way for us to plan in terms of long term and stability,” he said. “Our economy has been growing. We’ve got momentum, but that momentum can stall, because the economies in Europe are weak. The economies in Asia are weak. The dollar is becoming stronger. … We’ve got to stay humming.” | “That’s just not the right way for us to plan in terms of long term and stability,” he said. “Our economy has been growing. We’ve got momentum, but that momentum can stall, because the economies in Europe are weak. The economies in Asia are weak. The dollar is becoming stronger. … We’ve got to stay humming.” |
| The number of Americans participating in the labor force in March dropped by 96,000, causing the labor participation rate to drop from 62.8% in February to 62.7%. This could imply that Americans are still unsure about the US recovery. | |
| At 60.8%, participation rate for black Americans was lower than the overall labor participation rate. Their unemployment rate was 10.1% - more than double the white unemployment rate of 4.7%. | |
| The number of American workers who wanted a full-time job but were only able to find a part-time one was 6.7 million. | |
| About 7.26 million Americans held more than one job. About 3.87 million of them had one full-time job and one part-time job. |