The new decade is off to a strong start with the U.S. economy adding 225,000 jobs in January. The unemployment rate also ticked up to 3.6% as more Americans decide to look for new career opportunities. Additionally, year-over-year hourly wages are up 3.1%. As you can see, all signs are indicating an active labor market as we make our way into 2020. Let’s take a closer look at the January 2020 Jobs Report.
January 2020 Jobs Report Breakdown
January is the 112th month of consecutive job gains and was definitive proof that the labor market is speeding up. The unemployment rate also increased a tenth of a percent (to 3.6%) above last month’s 50-year low. These results blew away economists’ predictions of a measly 164,000 jobs for January. And if that isn’t impressive enough, last month’s gains clocked in at 50,000 more jobs than 2019’s monthly average of 175,000.
Over the previous two months, employment gains were slightly revised up by 7,000 jobs. Job gains in November were revised up by 5,000 (from +256,000 to +261,000) and gains from December increased by 2,000 jobs (from +145,000 to +147,000). However, over the last three months, employment gains are averaging 211,000 per month, much higher than the monthly average over the last 12 months.
Average hourly earnings also saw a bump in January with an increase of $0.07 to $28.44. Over the last 12 months, average hourly earnings have climbed by 3.1%. Average hourly earnings have been relatively flat over the last year or so, but regardless, remain on the positive side.
Jobs gains by industry:
- Construction: +44,000 jobs (+12,000 monthly average in 2019)
- Residential: +18,000
- Nonresidential: +17,000
- Healthcare: +36,000 jobs (+361,000 jobs over last 12 months)
- Ambulatory Healthcare Services: +23,000
- Hospitals: +10,000
- Leisure and Hospitality: +36,000 jobs (+288,000 jobs over last 6 months)
- Transportation and Warehousing: +28,000 jobs (+106,000 jobs over last 12 months)
- Couriers and Messengers: +14,000
- Warehousing and Storage: +6,000
- Professional and Business Services: +21,000 jobs (+390,000 over last 12 months)
- Manufacturing: -12,000 jobs
- Motor Vehicles: -11,000 jobs
To summarize, jobs continue to increase at a steady rate, and more job seekers are entering the job market as their confidence continues to grow. If your team needs help sourcing talent in this tight market, let’s work together. Our team of recruiters is ready to help make an impact on your hiring efforts in 2020. Reach out to us today!
