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December 04, 2020US EMPLOYMENT, NOVEMBER 2020 The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that US non-farm payroll employment increased by 0.2 million from October to November 2020 for the seventh consecutive month following a sharp decline in March and April. In November 2020, the gain in US employment was lesser in magnitude compared to previous six months gain.
The US unemployment rate edged down 0.2 percentage points to 6.7%. The improvements in the labor market reflected a continued resumption of economic activity that had been curtailed in March and April due to the COVID-19 pandemic and efforts to contain it. While in recent months the pace of improvement has moderated.
The US employment fell by 22.2 million in March and April combined. The strongest employment increases occurred in transportation and warehousing, professional and business services, and health care in November 2020. Employment declined in government and retail trade. Despite the monthly increase, nonfarm employment in November was 6.5% (9.8 million) below its February level.
The US unemployment rate declined by 0.2 percentage points to 6.7% in November 2020, the unemployment rate is 8.0 percentage points lower than recent high in April 2020. US unemployment decreased by 0.3 million to 10.7 million in November 2020. While unemployment decreased for seven consecutive months, the US unemployment rate remains 3.2 percentage points higher and the number of unemployed persons increased by 4.9 million since February 2020 due to COVID-19 and efforts to contain it.
The US participation rate decreased 0.2 percentage point to 61.5% of the working age population in November, this is 1.9 percentage points below its February level.
The US employment to population ratio edged down by 0.1 percentage point to 57.3% in November but 3.8 percentage points lower than its February level.
The reference week for the US household survey was November 8th through November 14th.
Note: Canadian and US labour force statistics refer to different working-age cohorts.
Sources:
US Bureau of Labor Statistics news release, Commissioner's Statement on the Employment Situation
Statistics Canada. Table 14-10-0287-01 Labour force characteristics, monthly, seasonally adjusted and trend-cycle
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