Hardware Retailing The Industry's Source for Insights and Information
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ latest monthly surveys, the U.S. added 223,000 jobs in December. Several industries saw noteworthy job gains, including leisure and hospitality, which added 67,000 jobs, and construction jobs increased by 28,000 jobs. Construction employment increased by an average of 19,000 per month in 2022, a little different than the average of 16,000 per month in 2021.
Employment in retail trade changed little in December (+9,000). Job growth in retail trade averaged 16,000 per month in 2022, less than half the average growth of 35,000 per month in 2021.
The unemployment rate dropped to 3.5% last month and has been within the 3.5% to 3.7% range since March 2022. The number of unemployed people decreased to 5.7 million people, and the number of long-term unemployed dropped to 1.1 million people or nearly 18.5% of all unemployed.
See how the numbers for jobs in December compared to November’s numbers here.
