April 2019 Jobs Report

Unemployment Rate: 3.6 percent

Jobs Created: 263,000

Employment and Unemployment

1. The Department of Labor reported the unemployment rate dropped 0.2 percentage point to 3.6 percent in April. It is the lowest rate since December 1969.

2.  Nonfarm jobs grew by 263,000 in April. Economists surveyed by the Wall Street Journal had expected 190,000 jobs.

3.  Combined job growth for February and March was stronger than originally reported. Labor revised the job creation numbers up for February and down for March, for a net upward revision of 16,000 jobs.  

4.  The U-6 unemployment rate, a measure that also includes part-time and discouraged workers, held steady at 7.3 percent.

Labor Force Participation

1. The labor force participation rate, the share of people employed or looking for work, fell 0.2 percentage point to 62.8 percent.

Wages

1. In April, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 6 cents to $27.77. It is a 3.2 percent increase from a year ago.