The economy fell slightly short of predictions and added 559,000 new jobs in May after a bleak jobs report the month prior.
The unemployment rate was 5.8%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. The numbers were a bit short of expectations, with the consensus among economists being that 650,000 jobs would be added, and unemployment would drop from 6.1% to 5.9%.
“It’s great to see a pickup to job growth, but it would have been better to see a larger acceleration,” said Nick Bunker, who leads North American economic research at the Indeed Hiring Lab. “Adding over a half-million jobs in one month is a solid pace of growth, but we will need to keep up this tempo for quite some time to get back to a semblance of the pre-pandemic labor market.”
“Hopefully, we will see an acceleration in the months ahead. The labor market is not treading water, but it could take some time before we make it back to shore,” he said on Friday morning.
There were notable job gains in the leisure and hospitality industry, in public and private education, and in healthcare and social assistance, the report said. The leisure and hospitality industry alone added 292,000 jobs in May.
The less-than-anticipated May jobs report may give pause to those who think the economy might be growing too quickly after the Biden administration spent heavily on the country’s COVID-19 recovery.
The April report was a major disappointment, with the economy adding just 278,000 jobs — far below forecast predictions of nearly 1 million additional jobs. The unemployment rate also rose slightly to 6.1%, which was the first time it ticked up during the recovery from the pandemic recession, which at its April peak caused 14.8% unemployment across the country.
HALF OF STATES ARE ENDING EXPANDED UNEMPLOYMENT — HERE IS WHEN
The news of the new jobs comes as businesses, particularly in the retail, dining, and travel industries, continue to open up as states lift pandemic-induced restrictions. Friday’s is the first jobs report since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidance that those who are vaccinated don’t have to wear face coverings inside or outside.
At least 63% of adults in the United States have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and 52% are fully vaccinated. That number is much higher among vulnerable populations, with 86% of those 65 or older having a least one shot and three-fourths fully inoculated.
Friday’s report might add to the concerns of some economists and lawmakers worried about a potential labor shortage in the U.S. Certain businesses, especially those such as restaurants that pay lower wages, have reported difficulty recruiting and retaining workers.
Some economists are placing some of the blame on the federal expanded unemployment program that gives those without jobs $300 in addition to state benefits, a figure that is on average more than double the federal minimum wage. Twenty-five states, all Republican-led, have announced that they would opt-out of the program before it sunsets in September.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Friday’s jobs report follows a Thursday report from the Labor Department that found jobless claims dropped below 400,000 last week for the first time since the start of the health crisis. Some 385,000 people filed for unemployment, slightly beating economists’ predictions of 390,000 doing so.
