Commissioner's Statement on the Employment Situation News Release - 2022 M08 Results — 2022-09-02

Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 315,000 in August, and the unemployment rate rose to 3.7 percent. Notable job gains occurred in professional and business services, health care, and retail trade. Total nonfarm employment increased by 5.8 million over the year, as the labor market continued to recover from the job losses of the pandemic-induced recession. This growth brings total nonfarm employment 240,000 above its February 2020 level before the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In August, employment growth continued in professional and business services (+68,000). Job gains occurred in computer systems design and related services (+14,000), management and technical consulting services (+13,000), architectural and engineering services (+10,000), and scientific research and development services (+6,000). In August, legal services lost jobs (-9,000). Over the past 12 months, professional and business services has added 1.1 million jobs.