WASHINGTON, D.C. — Nonfarm employment in the United States rose by a total of 253,000 positions in April, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). This number reflects an increase from last month’s number, beating Wall Street Estimates of 180,000. Employment in February and March was revised down by a total of 149,000.
Meanwhile, the jobless rate fell to 3.4 percent in April, matching the lowest reading since 1969. The low unemployment rate keeps upward pressure on wages, which grew 4.4 percent in April from a year earlier, according to The Wall Street Journal. That was slightly higher than a 4.3 percent annual increase in March.
Sectors that saw increases in employment included professional and business services, healthcare, leisure and hospitality and social assistance. Average monthly gain in the professional and business services across the prior six months was 25,000, with April seeing the addition of 45,000 jobs.
Healthcare employment increased by a comparable 40,000 positions. This is in keeping with the average monthly gain of 47,000 across the prior six months. Leisure and hospitality, social assistance and financial activities added 31,000, 25,000 and 23,000 jobs in April, respectively.
Additionally, government employment increased by 23,000. This is a slowdown relative to the average monthly increase of 52,000 across the prior six months, and total government employment remains below the February 2020 level by 1.3 percent.
The unemployment rate, which sat at 3.4 percent, changed little relative to last month, with the total number of unemployed persons at 5.7 million.