November 2009 Non-Farm Payroll Rises 4,000; Unemployment Rate Lowers to 10.0
Posted by rawfinance on December 4, 2009
The unemployment rate edged down to 10.0 percent in November 2009, and non-farm payroll employment was essentially unchanged, but has been revised to a small gain (+4,000, revised 01.08.10 from the original estimate of -11,000), the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported today. In the prior 3 months, payroll job losses had averaged 135,000 a month. In November, employment fell in construction, manufacturing, and information, while temporary help services and health care added jobs. Since the beginning of the recession in December 2007, 7.2 million jobs have been lost, according to the BLS.
On average, economists had expected job losses of 125,000 in November, so today’s report comes as quite a pleasant surprise. It’s difficult to tell why the figure was so low, but seasonal adjustments may have had something to do with it. Recall that one year ago, job losses were in the 650,000 range, so that might have skewed the seasonal adjustment that the BLS builds into its calculation. But we can get carried away with statistical analysis. Instead, let’s look at the more forward-looking indicators within the report.
Temporary Employment
Employment in professional and business services rose by 86,000 in November. Temporary help services accounted for the majority of the increase, adding 52,000 jobs. Since July, temporary help services employment has risen by 117,000. This is encouraging for the sustainability of the economic recovery.
Average Workweek
In November, the average workweek for production and non-supervisory workers on private non-farm payrolls rose by 0.2 hour to 33.2 hours. The manufacturing workweek increased by 0.3 hour to 40.4 hours. Factory overtime rose by 0.1 hour to 3.4 hours. Since May, the manufacturing workweek has increased by 1.0 hour.
Average Hourly Earnings
In November, average hourly earnings of production and non-supervisory workers on private non-farm payrolls edged up by 1 cent, or 0.1 percent, to $18.74. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have risen by 2.2 percent, while average weekly earnings have risen by 1.6 percent.
Prior Months Revised
The change in total non-farm payroll employment for September was revised from -219,000 to -139,000, and the change for October was revised from -190,000 to -111,000.
To view the full BLS employment report, please click on the “Employment Statistics” page on the menu bar above.
