Total U.S. jobs

The U.S. economy added 227,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in November, marking a strong rebound from October’s hurricane- and strike-impacted growth of just 36,000. Revisions to September and October figures added another 56,000 jobs, highlighting a labor market that continues to exhibit resilience.

Despite this strength, job growth has shown some signs of moderation. Over the past eight months, nonfarm payrolls have grown by an average of 148,000 per month, compared to the more robust pace of 237,000 in the preceding eight months.

Still, the bigger picture tells a remarkable story: the U.S. has now seen 47 consecutive months of job gains, adding 16.8 million positions over that span. Total nonfarm payroll employment has surged to a record 159.3 million, standing nearly 7.0 million jobs—or 4.6%—above the pre-pandemic peak of February 2020.

The unemployment rate ticked up slightly from 4.1% to 4.2%, aligning with the level last seen in August. Meanwhile, the number of unemployed individuals decreased modestly from 161.5 million to 161.1 million. However, the labor force participation rate dipped from 62.6% to 62.5%, marking a six-month low. Over the past two months, the labor force has shrunk by 413,000, signaling that a growing number of potential workers are stepping away from the job market—for now. Reengaging these sidelined workers will be critical in the months ahead.  

Average hourly earnings for production and nonsupervisory workers in the private sector increased by 3.9% over the past year, a slight decline from October’s 4.1% year-over-year growth. This matches the rate observed in July, marking the lowest level since May 2021. Wage growth has been gradually easing since its peak of 7.0% in March 2022.

Job growth in November was broad-based, with notable gains across most sectors. Leading the way were private education and health services, leisure and hospitality (particularly eating and drinking establishments), and professional and business services. However, employment declined in trade, transportation, and utilities (including retail trade) and the federal government. The private sector added 194,000 jobs, while government employment increased by 33,000. Below is a breakdown of sector employment changes for November, ranked from highest to lowest:

• Private education and health services: +79,000
• Leisure and hospitality: +53,000 (eating and drinking places up 28,900)
• Professional and business services: +26,000
• Manufacturing: +22,000
• State government: +20,000
• Financial activities: +17,000
• Local government: +15,000
• Construction: +10,000
• Other services: +8,000
• Mining and logging: +2,000
• Information: unchanged
• Federal government: -2,000
• Trade, transportation, and utilities: -23,000 (retail trade down 28,000)

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