Key Points:
- Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 261,000 in October as the unemployment rate rose to 3.7%.
- Consensus among economists was a gain of 200,000 jobs.
- In October, the unemployed population rose to 6 million but there were 10.7 million job openings in September.
- Employment in health care rose by 53,000 in October, professional and technical services added 43,000 jobs, leisure and hospitality added 35,000 jobs, and manufacturing added 32,000 jobs.
- In October, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by $0.12 to $32.58.
- The average workweek for all private employees was 34.5 hours for the fifth month in a row.
- The labor force participation rate decreased again over the month to 62.2% and is 1.2% below its February 2020 level.