U.S. unemployment remained at 3.6 percent in May for the third straight month as nonfarm employment rose by 390,000, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Strong job gains occurred in professional and business services, transportation and warehousing, and leisure and hospitality activities, according to BLS. Employment in construction increased by 36,000 last month. Manufacturing employment ticked up by 19,000.
Both the unemployment rate and the number of unemployed Americans — 6 million — are similar to the February 2020 report, when they were 3.5 percent and 5.7 million, respectively. The number of people who were temporarily laid off remained mainly the same in May at 810,000. The number of long-term unemployed Americans decreased to 1.4 million, but remains 235,000 higher than before the pandemic. Year-over-year average hourly earnings increased by 5.2 percent in May.
The number of workers employed part-time due to their hours being reduced or an inability to find full-time positions increased by 295,000 to 4.3 million last month, “reflecting an increase in the number of persons whose hours were cut due to slack work or business conditions,” according to the report. That figure is similar to February 2020.
The human resources firm ADP’s National Employment Report also showed employment increases last month. According to the company, U.S. nonfarm private employment grew by 128,000. However, small businesses with fewer than 50 employees shed 91,000 jobs. Employment grew by 97,000 at businesses with 50-499 employees, and by 122,000 at large businesses.
“Under a backdrop of a tight labor market and elevated inflation, monthly job gains are closer to pre-pandemic levels,” said Nela Richardson, ADP chief economist. “The job growth rate of hiring has tempered across all industries, while small businesses remain a source of concern as they struggle to keep up with larger firms that have been booming as of late.”