October Jobs Report: Workers Continue Winning Streak!

Washington, DC— Friday, Congressman Mo Brooks (AL-05) emphasized the strong Bureau of Labor Statistics October jobs report.

Congressman Brooks said, “The winning streak for American workers continued in October with increased jobs and an unchanged unemployment rate. The American economy added 250,000 jobs in October, and the overall unemployment rate held steady at 3.7%.[1] This great news comes on the heels of the Labor Department report that wages and salaries jumped 3.1% over the last year, the highest increase in a decade.[2] These combined numbers mean more better paying jobs for American workers.”

Brooks continued, “Job openings in America recently hit an all-time high at 7.1 million.[3] Employers are having to compete for workers, driving up wages. According to the Commerce Department, from October 2017 to October 2018 average weekly earnings for American workers increased by $31.28.”

Brooks concluded, “Since January 2017, the U.S. economy has added 4 million jobs,[4] and in September the unemployment rate fell to 3.7%, the lowest since 1969.[5] The American economy and the American people continue to thrive under pro-growth, free-enterprise policies that make us all better off.”

Key takeaways from the Bureau of Labor Statistics October jobs report are:

1. America’s economy added 250,000 new, nonfarm payroll jobs in October 2018.
2. America’s economy added 2.5 million new, nonfarm payroll jobs over the past year.
3. America’s October unemployment rate was 3.7%, a year-to-year improvement of 0.4 percentage points over the 4.1% unemployment rate of October 2017.
4. Unemployment rates for all major races and ethnicities improved or dipped slightly over the past year:

·         The African American unemployment rate improved by 1.1 percentage points (from 7.3% in October 2017 to 6.2% in October 2018).

·         The Hispanic American unemployment rate improved by 0.4 percentage points (4.8% to 4.4%).

·         The Caucasian American unemployment rates improved by 0.2 percentage points (3.5% to 3.3%).

·         The Asian American unemployment rate inched up by 0.2 percentage points (3.0% to 3.2%).

5. Females (at 3.4% unemployment rate) continued to do better than males (at 3.5% unemployment rate).
6. Over the past year, the average weekly earnings for all non-farm American workers increased by $31.28.

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[1] https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf

[2] https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/eci.pdf

[3] https://www.bls.gov/news.release/jolts.nr0.htm

[4] https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/CES0000000001

[5] https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-unemployment-rate-falls-to-lowest-level-since-1969-1538742766