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U.S. Unemployment Falls To 7.7% In February, With 236,000 Jobs Added
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 8, 2013
Modified Mar 8, 2013
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By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 8, 2013
Modified Mar 8, 2013
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The U.S. Department of Labor announced that 236,000 jobs were added last month, bringing the unemployment rate to 7.7%. The NY Times reports that the number of jobs added was "well above what had been expected. The gains were broad-based, with sectors ranging from manufacturing to business services turning in healthy results. Construction was especially strong, adding 48,000 jobs, a sign that the recovery in the housing market is beginning to translate into new jobs."
The Wall Street Journal notes:
February's numbers point to an upturn for the labor market, which has struggled to gain traction since the recession ended in 2009. For all of last year, the economy added an average of about 183,000 jobs a month. Over the past four months, that pace has picked up a little to an average of 205,000 a month—though the gains have been choppy. January payrolls were revised to a gain of only 119,000 from the originally reported 157,000, while December was revised up to a gain of 219,000 from the previously reported 196,000.
More jobs have helped bring down the unemployment rate, though about 130,000 Americans dropping out of the labor force also contributed to the decline. There are still about 12 million Americans who want a job but can't find one.
Yesterday, the Times had a depressing story about hopeful job applicants interviewing repeatedly for jobs that never seem to get filled. One man, a video editor, had been called back 8-9 times by different firms; when he was signing into one company's security for a sixth time, he was "chided by the security guard. 'He thought I worked there and just kept forgetting my security badge,' [Paul] Sullivan said. 'He couldn’t believe I was actually there for another interview. I couldn’t either! But then I put on a happy face, went upstairs and waited for another round of questions.'"
Tagged
economy
jobs
Unemployment
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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