(BLS) US nonfarm payroll employment increased by 210,000 in November, missing the expected 550,000 gain. The unemployment rate edged down by 0.4% to 4.2%.
Job gains were posted in professional and business services, construction, manufacturing, transportation, and warehousing. Retail sales recorded a decline in jobs in November.
The decline in unemployment reflected a fall in the number of unemployed persons by 542,000, which marked a lower 6.9 million in November.
The labor force participation rate improved to 61.8%. The rate is now 1.5% below February 2020.
The number of permanent job losers fell by 205,000 to 1.9 million. The number was 623,000 above the levels in February 2020.
Part-time employees were little changed at 4.3% in November from the previous month, while those not in the labor force and want a job held steady at 5.9 million.
Average hourly earnings rose by 8 cents to $31.03 in November, with the increment 4.8% higher from the prior year.
Nonfarm payrolls has now increased by 18.5 million from April last year but is still 3.9 million below the pre-pandemic level.
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