- The increase this month is a 0.3% growth, bringing the total number of jobless to 6.1M.
- There was also a change to April’s employment growth numbers in the updated report.
The unemployment rate in the United States rose to 3.7% in May, according to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). In addition, there were an additional 339,000 nonfarm payroll employment created for the economy last month. The increase this month is a 0.3% growth, bringing the total number of jobless to 6.1 million.
Furthermore, the employment growth numbers were significantly different from predictions of adding 180,000 jobs. As a result, May’s growth rate surpassed April’s revised rate of expansion, as reported by the BLS.
Layoffs Decreased Between March and April
There was also a change to April’s employment growth numbers in the updated BLS report. Bringing the total number of people counted up from 253,000 to 294,000. However, March’s revised figures on employment growth increased from 165,000 to 217,000.
The unemployment rate in April, which stood at 3.4%, was below expectations, which had been set at 3.5%. The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) data, which was issued on Wednesday, also showed a reversal of previous trends in the employment market. Specifically, March and April saw an uptick in vacancies following months on the down.
The number of available jobs increased by 358,000 to 10.1 million in February and March, after having dropped below the 10 million barrier. The poll also found that the number of layoffs decreased between March and April. In fact, the number went down by 264,000, and now stands at 1.6 million.
