Headline RoundupMay 6th, 2022

US Economy Added 428,000 Jobs in April; Unemployment Steady at 3.6%

Summary from the AllSides News Team

The U.S. economy added 428,000 jobs last month, beating economists' expectations, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

April's unemployment rate was 3.6%, the same as March. The U.S. economy has now added 400,000 or more jobs in 12 straight months; economists surveyed by news sources on all sides expected roughly 390,000 new jobs in April. The labor force participation rate fell 0.2 percentage points in April to 62.2%, matching the lowest level recorded in 2022. Wages rose 0.3 percentage points on average from March and 5.5% for the year ended in April. 

The biggest job gains by industry were in the leisure and hospitality industry (78,000), manufacturing (55,000), and transportation and warehousing (52,000). The nation has recovered 20.8 million of the 22 million jobs lost early in the COVID-19 pandemic, and is now 1.2 million jobs short of its pre-pandemic level. 

The jobs data was covered prominently by news sources across the political spectrum. Both left-rated and right-rated sources tended to frame the data as a good sign for the labor market. Some coverage from the right highlighted other ongoing economic concerns, such as high inflation and the smaller U.S. workforce.

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