The Employment Situation: February 2001 — 2001-03-09

The unemployment rate held at 4.2 percent in February, and total nonfarm employment rose by 135,000, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Large job losses continued in manufacturing, where employment declined by 94,000. Employment gains in several other industries, including services, accounted for the net increase in payroll employment. Average hourly earnings rose by 7 cents over the month. Both the number of unemployed persons (5.9 million) and the unemployment rate (4.2 percent) were essentially unchanged in February. The jobless rates for most of the major worker groups--adult men (3.5 percent), adult women (3.7 percent), teenagers (13.6 percent), whites (3.7 percent), and Hispanics (6.3 percent)--were little changed from January. The unemployment rate for blacks declined to 7.5 percent, the same level as in the last quarter of 2000.