Commissioner's Statement on the Employment Situation News Release — 2014-05-02

Advance copies of this statement are made available to the press under lock-up conditions with the explicit understanding that the data are embargoed until 8:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time. Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 288,000 in April, and the unemployment rate fell by 0.4 percentage point to 6.3 percent. Job gains were widespread, led by employment growth in professional and business services, retail trade, food services and drinking places, and construction. Incorporating the revisions for February and March, which increased total nonfarm employment by 36,000 on net, monthly job gains have averaged 238,000 over the past 3 months. In the 12 months prior to April, employment growth averaged 190,000 per month. Employment in professional and business services rose by 75,000 over the month. The industry had added an average of 55,000 jobs per month in the 12 months prior to April. Job growth continued in temporary help services, which was up by 24,000 over the month.