U.S. Employers Added 113,000 Jobs in January

This morning the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that nonfarm payroll employment rose by 113,000 jobs in January. At 6.6 percent, the unemployment rate changed little over the month.

Employers added 48,000 construction jobs to their payrolls in January. Professional and business services added 36,000 jobs, while manufacturing employment rose by 21,000 jobs over the month. Federal government employment declined by 12,000 jobs in January, with the U.S. Postal Service accounting for most of the loss.

The BLS reported a total of 10.2 million unemployed persons nationwide in January. The agency's news release notes that among major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (6.2%), adult women (5.9%), teens (20.7%), whites (5.7%), blacks (12.1%), and Hispanics (8.4%) showed little change in January.

After declining by 548,000 in 2013, the U.S. labor force started the year with a gain of 523,000 in January. The labor force participation rate (63.0%) bumped up slightly from 62.8 percent the prior month. Still, these labor force participation rates are the lowest seen since 1978.

More information can be found in the full news release from the BLS.

All figures in this post are seasonally adjusted.