Five Consecutive Months of 200,000+ Job Gains in U.S.

This morning the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that employers added 288,000 jobs to payrolls in June. That marks the fifth consecutive month where the U.S. added at least 200,000 jobs. Over the past three months, job gains averaged 272,000 per month; over the past year, monthly growth averaged 208,000 jobs.

In June, professional and business services added 67,000 jobs, while retail trade employment rose by 40,000, and health care added 21,000. The only decline among broad industry sectors occurred in other services (-6,000).

The unemployment rate dropped to 6.1 percent in June. The number of long-term (27+ weeks) unemployed persons fell by 293,000, but they still account for one-third of all unemployed persons.

More information about June's national employment situation can be found in the full BLS news release.