The Employment Situation: July 2006 — 2006-08-04

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 113,000 in July, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.8 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Job gains occurred in several service- providing industries, including professional and business services, health care, and food services. Employment also rose in mining. Average hourly earnings rose by 7 cents, or 0.4 percent, in July. The number of unemployed persons edged up to 7.2 million in July, and the unemployment rate rose to 4.8 percent. A year earlier, the number of unemployed persons was 7.5 million and the jobless rate was 5.0 percent. Over the month, the unemployment rates for most major worker groups--adult women (4.2 percent), teenagers (15.5 percent), whites (4.1 percent), blacks (9.5 percent), and Hispanics (5.3 percent)--showed little or no change. After declining in June, the jobless rate for adult men increased to 4.2 percent in July.