Key Points:
- Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 228,000 in March and the unemployment rate rose slightly to 4.2%.
- Consensus was a gain of 135,000 jobs.
- The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for January was revised down by 14,000, from +125,000 to +111,000, and the change for February was revised down by 34,000, from +151,000 to +117,000. With these revisions, employment in January and February combined is 48,000 lower than previously reported.
- Healthcare added 54,000 jobs in March, social assistance increased by 24,000, retail trade added 24,000 jobs, and transportation and warehousing rose by 23,000.
- Federal government employment fell by 4,000 in March.
- In March, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by $0.09 to $36.00.
- The average workweek for all private employees was unchanged at 34.2 hours in March.
- The labor force participation rate changed little over the month at 62.5%.
- The Right Facts will continue to monitor employment.