Labor and Industry Trends
for March 2023
JOB GROWTH REMAINS ABOVE PRE-PANDEMIC LEVELS
Employers added 236,000 jobs and the unemployment rate dipped slightly to 3.5%. The year-over-year growth in average hourly earnings also slowed to 4.2%, the smallest increase since July 2021. Perhaps this is a good sign as the Federal Reserve has been looking to slow inflation. This is particularly noteworthy as many economists predicted wage inflation would not abate without a significant uptick in unemployment.
This Ruler is for the Space Above and Below the Header Text Area.
It Should Reach from the Bottom of the the Nav Bar to the Top of the Header Text.
And From the Bottom of the Header Text to the Bottom of the Header Photo.
This Ruler is for the Space Between the Bottom of the Hero/Header Text and the
Subheader Copy. Check Your Spacing for Consistency.
This Ruler is for the Space Between Modules/Macros/Sections.
It Should Reach from the Bottom of the Previous Module/Macro to the Top of the Next Section.
This Ruler is for the Space Between Text/Buttons/Callouts. Check Your Spacing for Consistency.
What does this mean for clients?
While there is a degree of cooling to the overall labor market, there are a few important distinctions to point out. First, unemployment at 3.5% is near all-time historic lows. Second, even though there have been widely reported layoffs at many high-profile technology companies, only a relatively small number of highly skilled technologists are filing for unemployment. The evidence is compelling that many of these technology companies over-hired during the pandemic relative to revenue growth and are now rebalancing their labor force. A careful distinction needs to be made between those technology companies’ highly publicized layoffs versus the actual on-going demand for highly skilled technologists across industries. Also of note, the U.S. labor force added nearly half a million workers in March, and the share of Americans considered in their prime working age rose to 80.7%, the highest rate since 2001.
In sum, there is some tempering to the overall labor market, which is exactly what The Federal Reserve is seeking. It’s still a healthy market running at better than pre-pandemic levels.
by Michael Blackman
CURRENT LABOR INDICATORS
February Jobs One-Month Net Change
Learn More About Kforce
As Chief Corporate Development Officer at Kforce, Michael Blackman, a 30-year Kforce veteran, is the primary focal point for the firm with the Wall Street and financial communities. He is regularly sought out by leading economists for his perspectives on the economy and labor markets, and he contributes to a number of key proprietary economic publications.
About the Author, Michael Blackman
3.5
Total Unemployment
%
236,000
Total Job Gains
%
4.2
Wage Growth (YoY)
77.8K
74K
67K
35.5K
29K
25K
16.4K
15.4K
13K
6K
1.1K
1K
-9K
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Leisure + Hospitality
Health care + Social assistance
Retail trade
Government
Professional + Business services
Construction
Mining + Logging
Financial activities
Manufacturing
Transportation + Warehousing
Information
%
5.1
SPACE IN BETWEEN MODULES/ Macros/ Sections
SPACE IN BETWEEN HEADER AND SUBHEAD + Subhead & Body
SPACE IN BETWEEN BUTTONS
Chart: Gabriel Cortes / CNBC
March Jobs One-Month Net Change
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
72K
47K
-15K
39K
34K
Healthcare
Professional + Business Services
Retail trade
Government
Leisure + Hospitality
Tech Job Openings across industries*
316,000
%
62.6
Labor Force Participation
Published April 11, 2023
Total Job Gains
236,000
%
4.2
Wage Growth (YoY)
*Source: CompTIA
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics