Labor and Industry Trends

Hurricanes and strikes = A noisy labor number

What does this mean?

During our recent earnings call, Kforce CEO Joe Liberatore highlighted that "While much has been written about the uncertainty in technology hiring and demand, our internal trends and discussions with our clients continue to indicate to us that the current operating environment is more stable and constructive than it was throughout most of 2023." He explained that clients' prolonged caution in initiating new investments has resulted in "an increasingly strong backlog of strategically imperative technology investments. We expect this backlog to be a high priority for our clients to initiate at an accelerated pace once the macro uncertainties begin to clear." He also emphasized that, over the long term, advancements in AI and other innovative technologies are likely to follow the historic Jevons Paradox, where increased efficiency leads to greater demand for technology resources rather than replacing them and that the pace of change will continue to accelerate. Kforce is ideally positioned to meet this eventual demand.

by Michael Blackman

CURRENT LABOR INDICATORS

Learn More About Kforce

As Chief Corporate Development Officer at Kforce, Michael Blackman, a 32 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.

4.1

Total Unemployment

12,000

Total Job Gains

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Published NOVEMBER 4, 2024

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

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OCTOBER 2024

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Michael Blackman

CHIEF CORPORATE DEVELOPMENT OFFICER

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Labor and Industry Trends for May 2023

Brad Boyd

PRACTICE LEADER

Meet the Authors

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.

Michael Blackman

Total nonfarm payroll employment was essentially unchanged in October, adding just 12,000 jobs, while the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.1%. However, October's jobs report doesn't point to a struggling job market. Under the surface, October's figures were impacted by manufacturing labor strikes including Boeing and Hurricanes Helene and Milton, which caused widespread devastation through the Southeast last month. With the "soft" October jobs report, the odds that the Federal Reserve will make another interest rate cut in the near term likely increased.

U.S. Unemployment Rate

OCTOBER 2022 THROUGH OCTOBER 2024

4.2%

4.0%

3.8%

3.6%

3.4%

3.2%

3.0%

Oct '22

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Nov '22

Dec '22

Jan '23

Feb '23

Mar '23

Apr '23

May '23

Jun '23

Jul '23

Aug '23

Sep '23

Oct '23

Nov '23

Dec '23

Jan '24

Feb '24

Mar '24

Apr '24

May '24

Jun '24

Jul '24

Aug '24

Sep '24

Oct '24

5.5%

4.5%

3.5%

2023

2022

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics