US Nonfarm Payroll Increases by 216,000 in December; Unemployment Steady at 3.7%

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Friday (1-5-24) that total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 216,000 in December. Payroll employment increased by 2.7 million in 2023, an average monthly gain of 225,000. However, that is substantially less than the increase of 4.8 million in 2022, with an average monthly gain of 399,000.

Notable job growth occurred in the following sectors:

• Government employment increased by 52,000 jobs in December. In 2023, government added an average 56,000 jobs per month, more than double the average monthly gain in 23,000 jobs in 2022.
• Health care added 38,000 jobs in December. Job growth in health care averaged 55,000 per month in 2023, up from 2022’s average monthly gain of 46,000.
• Social assistance increased by 21,000 jobs in December. Social assistance employment rose by an average of 22,000 per month in 2023, little changed from the average increase of 19,000 per month in 2022.
• Construction employment added 17,000 jobs in December. Employment in nonresidential building construction increased by 8,000 jobs. Construction added an average of 16,000 jobs per month in 2023, little different than the 2022 average monthly gain of 22,000.
• Leisure and hospitality increased by 40,000, little changed from November’s gain. The leisure and hospitality industry added an average of 39,000 per month in 2023, less than half the average gain of 88,000 per month in 2022. Employment in the industry is below its pre-pandemic February 2020 level by 163,000, or 1.0%.

Transportation and warehousing experienced a job loss of 23,000 in December. Since reaching a peak in October 2022, employment in transportation and warehousing has decreased by 100,000.

Employment was little changed in other major industries, including mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction; manufacturing; wholesale trade; information; financial activities; and other services.

In December, the unemployment rate held steady at 3.7%, and the number of unemployed persons was essentially unchanged at 6.3 million. These measures are higher than a year earlier, when the jobless rate was 3.5% and the number of unemployed persons was 5.7 million.

The BLS notes that monthly revisions result from additional reports received from businesses and government agencies since the last published estimate and from recalculations of seasonal factors. As a result, the change in total nonfarm payroll employment for October was revised downward by 45,000—from 150,000 to 105,000—and the change for November was downwardly revised by 26,000—from 199,000 to 173,000. With these revisions, employment in October and November combined is 71,000 lower than previously reported.