U.S. Adds 146,000 Jobs; Jobless Rate Falls to 7.7%
By NELSON D. SCHWARTZ
Published: December 7, 2012
Gary Cameron/Reuters
Job applicants at a job fair for veterans and their spouses this week at Nationals Park in Washington.
Multimedia
REACTIONS ON TWITTER
The 4 low wage subsectors-retail, leisure & hospitality, temps, healthcare & social assistance accoutned for 57% of all hiring. #EcoBrief $$
Change in jobs,
in thousands
in thousands
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
The jobless ratewas the lowest since December 2008. Economists had estimated the Labor Department would report that only 86,000 jobs were created in November and that the rate of unemployment would remain flat at 7.9 percent.
The strength of the numbers was all the more notable because many experts expected a muted jobs performance because of the impact of Hurricane Sandy, which hit the East Coast on Oct. 31.
The Labor Department revised its job growth figures for October and September downward.
Still, November’s net growth in payrolls was below the average of 170,000 new jobs added monthly over the course of August, September and October.
“The labor market is very much in the recovery stage,” said Ethan Harris, co-head of global economics at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, before the announcement. However, he added, “It’s a long way from full health with workers having little negotiating power when it comes to raises.”
Average hourly earnings in November rose 0.2 percent, the report showed.
Manufacturing jobs fell by 7,000. Economists have been closely watching the sector amid weak demand from Europe and signs that businesses in the United States are holding off on spending ahead of the fiscal impasse in Washington. from NY Times
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