Employment report is a mixed bag

Posted on 04 June 2010

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The Labor Department employment report released today reveals payrolls rose 431,000, but the bulk of those gains came as the government hired 411,000 workers to conduct U.S. Census jobs that will end after the summer.

Overall, it was the largest monthly increase since March 2000 and marked a fifth straight month of gains. The unemployment rate dropped from 9.9 to 9.7 percent.

Private employment, a barometer of labor market strength, increased just 41,000 after rising 218,000 in April. Employers increased hours, with the average workweek growing from 34.1 to 34.2 hours in April.

Click here to read a report by Bloomberg Business.

Click here for an analysis by MarketWatch.

Click here for the Labor Department release.

Comments

2 Friday, 04 June 2010 18:06

This is no mixed bag, no matter how you want to spin it.

This is continuing bad news for the economy.

1 Friday, 04 June 2010 15:43

My wife had one of the census jobs in May. They hired a crew of 12 people who went through four days training only to complete the assigned area in less than two weeks. Padding the numbers? You bet.

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