December Jobs Report: US Adds 216,000 Jobs

In December 2023, the United States added 216,000 new jobs, with the unemployment rate remaining steady at 3.7%. This increase in employment is part of a continuing trend in sectors such as government, health care, social assistance, and construction, although transportation and warehousing experienced job losses.

Is the U.S. Job Market Growing?

Considering the 216,000 jobs added in December, employment is continuing an upward trend across various sectors.

Despite some job losses in transportation and warehousing, the overall employment growth and steady unemployment rate at 3.7% indicate a resilient and expanding job market.

U.S. Unemployment Rates by Group in December 2023:

• Adult women: 3.3%
• Adult men: 3.5%
• Teenagers: 11.9%
• Whites: 3.5%
• Blacks: 5.2%
• Asians: 3.1%
• Hispanics: 5.0%

Additional Employment Statistics for December 2023:

• The number of long-term unemployed remained at 1.2 million, accounting for 19.7% of all unemployed persons.
• The number of workers who work part time for economic reasons stood at 4.2 million, with a slight increase over the year.
• Persons not in the labor force who currently want a job edged up to 5.7 million.
• Average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 15 cents to $34.27, marking a 4.1% rise over the past 12 months.

U.S. Industries with Notable Job Growth in December:

Healthcare

The healthcare sector continues to see significant growth, with an addition of 38,000 jobs. The expansion was largely driven by ambulatory health care services and hospitals, which stood out as substantial contributors.

Government

The government sector also demonstrated a surge, with an increase of 52,000 jobs. This growth was evident across local as well as federal government sectors, underlining a strong overall performance.

Social Assistance

The Social Assistance sector rose by 21,000 jobs, marking another significant increase in employment. This elevation was chiefly driven by the individual and family services sub-sector, which accounted for the majority of this growth.

Construction

The Construction sector continued to trend upward with an additional 17,000 jobs added. This demonstrates the robust growth and vitality in this industry.

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