April 2010 Employment Situation — 2010-05-07

Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 290,000 in April, the unemployment rate edged up to 9.9 percent, and the labor force increased sharply, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains occurred in manufactur- ing, professional and business services, health care, and leisure and hospi- tality. Federal government employment also rose, reflecting continued hiring of temporary workers for Census 2010. In April, the number of unemployed persons was 15.3 million, and the unem- ployment rate edged up to 9.9 percent. The rate had been 9.7 percent for the first 3 months of this year. (See table A-1.) Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rate for whites (9.0 percent) edged up in April, while the rates for adult men (10.1 percent), adult women (8.2 percent), teenagers (25.4 percent), blacks (16.5 percent), and Hispanics (12.5 percent) showed little or no change. The jobless rate for Asians was 6.8 percent, not seasonally adjusted.