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- calendar_today November 7, 2026
U.S. Job Growth Steady in October
The U.S. economy added 156,000 jobs in October while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.1%, according to a new report released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This marks a continuation of trends observed since March, with unemployment remaining within a tight range of 4.1% to 4.3%.
Professional Services Lead October Job Gains
Employment in the professional and business services sector surged by 70,000 jobs in October, marking the largest monthly increase for the industry since July 2022. The number far outpaced the sector’s average of 15,000 jobs added per month over the past year.
Orphe Divounguy, chief economist at The Center Square, noted that much of the gain was driven by temporary staffing and consulting, accounting for half the growth in the sector. “Temporary hiring can precede permanent recruitment. Consulting can support expansion,” Divounguy explained. He added that both options provide client companies flexibility to meet immediate needs without expanding permanent staff.
Healthcare and Transportation Sectors Show Gains
The healthcare industry, traditionally a reliable source of job growth, added 42,000 jobs during October, surpassing its 12-month average of 31,000 new positions per month. Additionally, the transportation and warehousing sector contributed 25,000 jobs, propelled largely by hiring in courier and messenger services.
Divounguy pointed out the significance of transportation and warehousing job increases as the holiday season approaches, when hiring patterns often shift. “The important comparison is whether they hire more or fewer workers than usual for this season,” he said. Since hiring figures are seasonally adjusted, a decline can be recorded even as employers add workers, if hiring falls below typical seasonal benchmarks. Since February, the transportation and warehousing sector has added 104,000 jobs.
Wages Inch Up as Inflation Remains a Concern
Average hourly earnings rose by 14 cents, or 0.4%, in October. This brought annual wage growth to 3.1%. Despite this increase, inflation continues to affect real wage gains. Divounguy noted that, after adjusting for inflation, hourly earnings declined by 0.7% year-over-year in September. “For households, the problem is that inflation has outpaced those gains,” he commented, highlighting ongoing concerns about the inflation impact on workers’ earnings.
Long-Term Unemployment and Participation Steady
The report revealed that long-term unemployment—defined as joblessness for 27 weeks or more—accounts for 27.6% of all unemployed people, impacting roughly two million individuals. “Long-term unemployment concerns me most,” Divounguy stated, warning that it is increasingly difficult for those without jobs to find employment, raising the risk that more people become stuck in prolonged unemployment.
The labor force participation rate stood at 61.9%, a figure that has changed little since January. The participation rate among prime-age adults also held steady through recent months. “Those figures support my view of a broadly stable labor market for workers in their prime working years,” Divounguy noted, cautioning that monthly figures can fluctuate and that consistent long-term patterns are more telling.
Economic Outlook Remains Cautious
Reviewing the report, Divounguy suggested that the data points to a resilient job market, but whether this resilience signals renewed strength depends on sustained creation of full-time opportunities. “This report makes the case for resilience,” he said. “Whether it signals renewed strength depends on whether stronger job growth translates into sustained, full-time opportunities.”
Source: tennesseestar.com.
