August’s BLS report doesn’t exactly scream recession proof America.
On my brief hiatus from covering the monthly employment situation reports, I skipped over a less than stellar report that was released by the BLS in July. But no worries, I’m back, and this time I’m here to recap an even worse report from August. Figures. But let’s move along to the discouraging details, shall we?
The national unemployment rate in the U.S. rose another four-tenths of a percentage point to reach 6.1 percent in August, the highest it’s been in five years. Total nonfarm payroll employment fell by 84,000 positions last month as well. With the employment numbers from July and June being revised to reflect larger losses than before, the total number of jobs that have been lost in our country since the start of 2008 now stands at 605,000.
These developments within the U.S. job market in August have done the most to spark discussions of a recession. The manufacturing industry bore the brunt of the cuts, posting a loss of 61,000 jobs last month. Almost 40,000 of these positions were lost in motor vehicles and parts manufacturing. Employment services also dropped 53,000 jobs over the month. Surprisingly, the construction sector only lost 8,000 positions in August, signifying a major slow-down in losses for the industry when compared with recent months. Wholesale trade cut another 10,000 positions, while retail trade dropped close to 20,000.
Job creation responsibilities, for the most part, fell solely on the shoulders of the health services industry. Health care and social assistance positions increased by 38,000 over the course of August. Food services and drinking places have officially fallen flat, adding only 2,300 jobs last month. Government managed to add 17,000 jobs as well, while the mining industry, which has been touted as a top-performing sector by the BLS as of late, added about 12,000 positions.
The average hourly earnings of U.S. workers jumped up another seven cents in August, and our average weekly earnings rose by almost half a percent to reach $611.32. In the last year, average hourly earnings in the country have increased by 3.6 percent.