News release: Employment Situation Summary, October 2008: “Nonfarm payroll employment fell by 240,000 in October, and the unemployment rate rose from 6.1 to 6.5 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. October’s drop in payroll employment followed declines of 127,000 in August and 284,000 in September, as revised. Employment has fallen by
1.2 million in the first 10 months of 2008; over half of the decrease has occurred in the past 3 months [emphasis added]. In October, job losses continued in manufacturing, construction, and several service providing industries. Health care and mining continued to add jobs.”