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August 06, 2021US EMPLOYMENT, JULY 2021 The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that US non-farm payroll employment increased 943,000 from June to July 2021.
US employment fell by 22.4 million in March and April 2020. Although this was a much sharper decline in employment than observed during the previous US recession, the recovery in employment has also been much faster. As of July 2021, US employment has recovered 74.5% of jobs lost in March and April 2020.
In July 2021, US employment increased substantially in leisure and hospitality (+380,000) though it still remains 1.7 million (10.3%) below its level from February 2020. Employment also increased in education as many schools returned to in-person learning, though this may also reflect variations in seasonal patterns of hiring and layoffs. There were also increases in employment for professional/business services, transportation and warehousing, "other services" (personal/repair), health care, manufacturing, information, financial activities, and mining. Employment was little changed in retail trade, construction, and wholesale trade.
The US unemployment rate declined 0.5 percentage points to 5.4% in July 2021. US unemployment was 8.7 million in July 2021. The US unemployment rate remains 1.9 percentage points higher and the number of unemployed persons increased by 3.0 million compared to February 2020.
The US participation rate edged up 0.1 percentage point to 61.7% of the working age population in July 2021, this is 1.6 percentage points below its February 2020 level.
The US employment to population ratio increased 0.4 percentage points to 58.4% in July 2021. This is 2.7 percentage points lower than its February 2020 level.
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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