THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION -- FEBRUARY 2014
Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 175,000 in February, and the
unemployment rate was little changed at 6.7 percent, the U.S. Bureau of
Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in professional and
business services and in wholesale trade but declined in information.
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| Effect of Winter Storms on Employment Estimates |
| |
| Severe winter weather occurred in much of the country during the |
| February reference periods for the establishment and household |
| surveys. For information on how weather can affect employment |
| and hours data, see Question 8 in the Frequently Asked Questions |
| section of this release. |
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Household Survey Data
Both the number of unemployed persons (10.5 million) and the unemployment
rate (6.7 percent) changed little in February. The jobless rate has shown
little movement since December. Over the year, the number of unemployed
persons and the unemployment rate were down by 1.6 million and 1.0
percentage point, respectively. (See table A-1.)
Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (6.4
percent), adult women (5.9 percent), teenagers (21.4 percent), whites (5.8
percent), blacks (12.0 percent), and Hispanics (8.1 percent) showed little
or no change in February. The jobless rate for Asians was 6.0 percent (not
seasonally adjusted), about unchanged over the year. (See tables A-1, A-2,
and A-3.)
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more)
increased by 203,000 in February to 3.8 million; these individuals accounted
for 37.0 percent of the unemployed. The number of long-term unemployed
was down by 901,000 over the year. (See table A-12.)
Both the civilian labor force participation rate (63.0 percent) and the
employment-population ratio (58.8 percent) were unchanged in February. The
labor force participation rate was down 0.5 percentage point from a year
ago, while the employment-population ratio was little changed over the
year.
The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons (sometimes
referred to as involuntary part-time workers) was little changed at 7.2
million in February. These individuals were working part time because their
hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find full-time work.
In February, 2.3 million persons were marginally attached to the labor
force, a decline of 285,000 over the year. (The data are not seasonally
adjusted.) These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were
available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12
months. They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched
for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey.
Among the marginally attached, there were 755,000 discouraged workers in
February, down by 130,000 from a year earlier. (The data are not seasonally
adjusted.) Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work
because they believe no jobs are available for them. The remaining 1.5
million persons marginally attached to the labor force in February had not
searched for work for reasons such as school attendance or family
responsibilities. (See table A-16.)
Establishment Survey Data
Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 175,000 in February. Job growth
averaged 189,000 per month over the prior 12 months. In February, job
gains occurred in professional and business services and in wholesale
trade, while information lost jobs.
Employment in professional and business services increased by 79,000 in
February. Accounting and bookkeeping services added 16,000 jobs. Employment
continued to trend up in temporary help services (+24,000) and in services
to buildings and dwellings (+11,000). Over the prior 12 months, professional
and business services added an average of 56,000 jobs per month.
In February, wholesale trade added 15,000 jobs, with nearly all of the
increase occurring in durable goods (+12,000). Over the prior 12 months,
the employment gain in wholesale trade averaged 9,000 per month.
Employment in food services and drinking places continued to trend up in
February (+21,000). Over the prior 12 months, this industry added an
average of 27,000 jobs per month.
In February, employment in construction changed little (+15,000). Over the
past year, construction has added 152,000 jobs. Within the industry,
employment in heavy and civil engineering construction rose by 12,000 in
February.
Employment in health care changed little in February (+10,000). This marks
the third consecutive month of little employment change in this industry.
Offices of physicians added 8,000 jobs in February. Employment in hospitals
changed little over the month but is down by 10,000 over the past 3 months.
Retail trade employment changed little in February (-4,000). Among the
component industries, a job gain in food and beverage stores (+12,000) was
more than offset by declines in electronics and appliance stores (-12,000);
sporting goods, hobby, book, and music stores (-9,000); and department
stores (-7,000). Over the year, retail trade has added 282,000 jobs.
Information lost 16,000 jobs in February. Most of the decline occurred in
motion picture and sound recording (-14,000); employment in this industry
can be volatile from month to month.
Employment in other major industries, including mining and logging,
manufacturing, transportation and warehousing, financial activities, and
government, changed little over the month.
The average workweek for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls edged
down by 0.1 hour to 34.2 hours in February. The manufacturing workweek was
unchanged at 40.7 hours, and factory overtime edged down by 0.1 hour to 3.3
hours. The average workweek for production and nonsupervisory employees
on private nonfarm payrolls declined by 0.2 hour to 33.3 hours. For
production workers, the manufacturing workweek has declined by 0.6 hour
over the past 3 months. (See tables B-2 and B-7.)
In February, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm
payrolls rose by 9 cents to $24.31. Over the year, average hourly earnings
have risen by 52 cents, or 2.2 percent. In February, average hourly
earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees increased
by 9 cents to $20.50. (See tables B-3 and B-8.)
The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for December was revised
from +75,000 to +84,000, and the change for January was revised from
+113,000 to +129,000. With these revisions, employment gains in December
and January were 25,000 higher than previously reported.
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