Statement of Philip L. Rones, Deputy Commissioner, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Friday, September 7, 2007: “Nonfarm payroll employment was essentially unchanged in August (-4,000), and the unemployment rate held at 4.6 percent. Payroll employment has grown little during the
past 3 months (44,000 per month on average), following downward revisions to June and July estimates. In contrast, payroll employment growth averaged 147,000 per month for the first 5 months of the year. Continuing job losses in manufacturing and construction, slower job growth in some service-providing industries, and declines in local government education contributed to the recent weakness in payroll employment.”
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