THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION: SEPTEMBER 2006

Nonfarm payroll employment held steady (+51,000), and the unemployment rate (4.6 percent) was essentially unchanged in September, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Job growth continued in health care and financial activities, while employment declined in manufacturing. Employment was little changed in other major industry sectors.

Unemployment (Household Survey Data

The number of unemployed persons (6.9 million) and the unemployment rate (4.6 percent) were essentially unchanged in September. Thus far in 2006, the jobless rate has ranged from 4.6 to 4.8 percent.

Over the month, the unemployment rates for most major worker groups--adult women (4.2 percent), teenagers (16.4 percent), whites (4.0 percent), blacks (9.2 percent), and Hispanics (5.4 percent)--showed little or no change. The jobless rate for adult men (3.8 percent) declined in September. The unemployment rate for Asians was 2.8 percent, not seasonally adjusted.

Total Employment and the Labor Force (Household Survey Data

Total employment, at 144.9 million, was essentially unchanged in September. Over the month, both the employment-population ratio (63.1 percent) and the labor force participation rate (66.2 percent) held steady. Over the year, the employment-population ratio was up slightly, and the labor force participation rate was unchanged.

Persons Not in the Labor Force (Household Survey Data

About 1.3 million persons (not seasonally adjusted) were marginally attached to the labor force in September, down from 1.4 million a year earlier. These individuals 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 325,000 discouraged workers in September, about unchanged from a year earlier. Discouraged workers were not currently looking for work specifically because they believed no jobs were available for them. The other 975,000 marginally attached had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey for reasons such as school attendance or family responsibilities.