The Summary of the Employment Situation released by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday reflects economic growth throughout February despite the ongoing labor shortage.
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The report found that the US economy gained 678,000 jobs during the month and unemployment fell to 3.8% from 4%. Comparatively, unemployment stood at 3.5% in February 2020, indicating a gradual trend towards pre-pandemic employment figures.
Payroll jobs rose by 678,000 in February; unemployment rate drops to 3.8% https://t.co/1Y9cSWJUIB #Job Report #BLSdata
— BLS Labor Statistics (@BLS_gov) March 4, 2022
The leisure and hospitality industries, professional and business services, healthcare and construction led the job gains in February. The report found that leisure and hospitality jobs alone increased by 179,000 jobs in February, signaling the sector’s revival. However, the industry is still down 9% compared to February 2020.
Related: Labor ‘Angry Quits’ from Jobs as Labor Market Tightening Forces Employers to Look to Unfavorable Conditions and Low Wages
February reflected a positive trend for people seeking work, as the number of non-labor force people currently seeking work fell by 349,000 to 5.4 million. However, this number is still higher than February 2020 which reached five million. The JOLTS report slated for release next Wednesday will provide more insight into the side of the workforce leaving their jobs, both voluntarily and involuntarily.
But despite the positive report, analysts are wary of inflation and shortage difficulties that are likely to limit economic growth in the first half of the year. “The employment report will show the US economy is healthy and moving forward,” Sung Won Sohn, professor of finance and economics at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, told Reuters. “But geopolitical issues will drive inflation higher and have created a large amount of uncertainty that will dampen economic and job growth going forward.”
Related: A Record 4.5 Million People Quit Their Jobs in November: Report
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