Employment rose in November, and the unemployment rate, at 5.4 percent, was essentially unchanged, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 112,000 over the month, with job gains in several service-providing industries.
unemployment (Household Survey Data)
Both the number of unemployed persons, 8.0 million, and the unemployment rate, 5.4 percent, were about unchanged in November. The jobless rate has been either 5.4 or 5.5 percent in each month since July. This is slightly below the rates that prevailed in the first half of 2004.In November, the unemployment rates for the major worker groups--adult men (4.9 percent), adult women (4.8 percent), teenagers (16.6 percent), whites (4.7 percent), blacks (10.8 percent), and Hispanics or Latinos (6.7 percent)--showed little or no change over the month. The unemployment rate for Asians was 4.2 percent in November, not seasonally adjusted.
Total Employment and the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)
Total employment in November grew by 483,000 to 140.3 million, and the employment-population ratio--the proportion of the population age 16 and over with jobs--edged up to 62.5 percent. The civilian labor force rose by 439,000 in November to 148.3 million; the labor force participation rate was 66.1 percent.Over the year, the number of persons who held more than one job increased by 346,000 to 7.6 million, not seasonally adjusted. These multiple jobholders represented 5.4 percent of total employment in November.
