Despite Slow Growth, U.S. Job Market Continues to Add Jobs, With Health Care and Social Assistance Sectors Leading the Way

In April, the U.S. economy added 175,000 jobs while the unemployment rate remained at 3.9%, according to a report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released on Friday. Despite this, job growth was seen in sectors such as health care, transportation, warehousing, and social assistance. This number was below the average of 242,000 jobs created over the past 12 months.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics noted that the total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 175,000 in April and that the unemployment rate and the number of unemployed individuals remained relatively stable. The unemployment rate has fluctuated between 3.7% and 3.9% since August 2023. The Dow Jones consensus had predicted 240,000 jobs and an unemployment rate of 3.8% for April.

In terms of demographics, the unemployment rate was 3.6% for adult men and 3.5% for adult women in April, with a much higher rate for teens at 11.7%. Unemployment rates were also varied among different racial groups: Whites had an unemployment rate of 3.5%, Blacks had an unemployment rate of 5.6%, Hispanics had an unemployment rate of 4.8%, and Asians had an unemployment rate of just 2.8%.

Job growth was seen across several sectors in addition to health care, social assistance, transportation, warehousing and retail – construction jobs also added about