By Thomas Cooley and Peter Rupert
The BLS announced that payroll employment rose by 49,000 in January. The added pandemic lockdowns over the past couple of months in many areas pushed retail employment down 37,800 and the leisure and hospitality sector shed 61,000 jobs. The health care sector also saw a decline in employment of 29,600. The declines can all be traced to the winter surge in the coronavirus. As the pandemic goes, so goes the economy with all of the hits being taken in the most vulnerable service sectors.
Average weekly hours rose slightly as did average hourly earnings, but not much to write home about.
Labor force participation rates fell, 61.5 to 61.4, while the employment to population ratio increased, 57.4 to 57.5. The unemployment rate fell to 6.3% from 6.7%. The decline came from a fall in the number of people unemployed, a rise in the number employed and a small increase in those not in the labor force.
With the infection rate now subsiding and more people getting vaccines, most are expecting an improving jobs picture over the next few months. Many other parts of the economy continue to be strong, a fact reflected in the frothy financial markets. There will continue to be reallocation of jobs in retail and in travel and leisure.