An encouraging 431,000 jobs were added to the U.S. economy in March – shy of forecasts but a strong indicator of recovery nevertheless. The unemployment hit 3.6%, down from 3.8% in February and a ‘pandemic-era low’. There is now a 1.6 million job difference between the economy now and that of February 2020, before the pandemic largely impacted the United States.
In February, job openings were up 43% year over year in February with 11.3 million openings – a near record level. “Job openings fell by 63,000 in “finance and insurance” and by 39,000 in “nondurable goods manufacturing.” However, they rose by 32,000 month over month in “arts, entertainment, and recreation.” Other sectors where job openings rose included “educational services,” up 26,000, and the “federal government,” up by 23,000.”
In March, US jobs were up 455,000 from February per the ADP National Employment Report. The “leisure and hospitality” sector topped it off by adding 161,000 jobs – employment increased across industries, although the “information” sector was flat in job growth.
Here are the jobs added in March by sector:
- Goods-producing, up 79,000
- Natural resources/mining, up 9,000
- Construction, up 15,000
- Manufacturing, up 54,000
- Service-providing, up 377,000
- Trade/transportation/utilities, up 49,000
- Information, 0
- Financial activities, up 12,000
- Professional/business services, up 61,000
- Professional/technical services, up 24,000
- Management of companies/enterprises, up 1,000
- Administrative/support services, up 36,000
- Education/health services, up 72,000
- Healthcare/social assistance, up 62,000
- Education, up 11,000
- Leisure/hospitality, up 161,000
- Other services, up 21,000
The jobs recovery in the U.S. is said to be moving into a new phase which is thought to be slower yet still harness a healthy amount of growth. Around 490,000 jobs were expected to be announced (actual was 431K) as added in March…meaning that more than 90% of all jobs lost during the recession have been recovered.
Even as wages continue to be on the rise, anxiety over inflation is also increasing. In low-wage industries, pay growth has tampered off – such as in food services, childcare, and retail. Other critical industries such as healthcare and legal services are still seeing salaries climb. Recent reports still indicate that demand for workers eclipses the volume of talent available to fill open roles, mostly due to the rapid economic recovery coming out of the pandemic. Recovery has been robust for younger workers and those in the 25-54 age bracket.
A whopping 95% of workers at some tech companies (such as PayPal and Better.com) are considering jumping to their next opportunity. Another 80% are thinking about job hunting as early as this Spring (so, now!). Companies within the financial services sector (such as Deloitte, American Express, Capital One) also ranked high with around 85% of workers considering leaving.
Until next week,
Erin and Team BountyJobs
