The Employment Situation: May 2007 — 2007-06-01

Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 157,000 in May, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.5 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Health care and food services added jobs, while employment declined in manufacturing. Average hourly earnings rose by 6 cents, or 0.3 percent, over the month. The number of unemployed persons (6.8 million) and the unemployment rate (4.5 percent) were unchanged in May. The jobless rate has ranged from 4.4 to 4.6 percent since September 2006. Over the month, the jobless rates for the major worker groups--adult men (4.0 percent), adult women (3.8 percent), teen- agers (15.7 percent), whites (3.9 percent), blacks (8.5 percent), and Hispanics (5.8 percent)--showed little or no change. The unemployment rate for Asians was 2.9 percent, not seasonally adjusted. (See tables A-1, A-2, and A-3.) In May, total employment was about unchanged at 145.9 million, and the em- ployment-population ratio held at 63.0 percent.