March 1997 — 1997-03-07

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 Standard Time. Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee: I appreciate this opportunity to comment on the labor market data released this morning. Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 339,000 in February, following a gain of 247,000 (as revised) in January. The unemployment rate, at 5.3 percent, was about unchanged over the month. Much of the February employment increase occurred in construction, which added 109,000 jobs. The magnitude of February�s increase can be attributed largely to mild weather across much of the country, following unusually severe weather in January, which had restricted employment growth. Nevertheless, job growth in construction has been strong since late 1995. The services industry added 80,000 jobs over the month, following a much larger increase in January.