September 1998 — 1998-09-04

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. Good morning. I am pleased to have this opportunity to comment on the employment and unemployment data for August that were released this morning. For the third month in a row, the unemployment rate stood at 4.5 percent. Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 365,000 in August, following a July gain of just 68,000. The August rebound reflects the return to payrolls of workers affected during July by auto-related strikes and plant shutdowns. Taking July and August together, gains in total nonfarm employment averaged about 217,000 per month, compared with the average monthly gain of 244,000 for the first 6 months of 1998. Manufacturing payrolls rose by 95,000 in August, recouping just under half of the July decline. On net, manufacturing employment has fallen 105,000 since June and 152,000 since April.