U.S. Payrolls Rise 165,000 in October as Unemployment Rate Slips to 4.1 Percent
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported in Washington on November 6, 2026, that total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 165,000 in October, well above the average monthly gain of 48,000 over the prior 12 months, while the unemployment rate changed little at 4.1 percent, with 7.1 million people unemployed. The jobless rate has remained in a narrow range of 4.1 percent to 4.3 percent since March.
Professional and business services added 70,000 jobs, well above its prior-12-month average of 15,000 a month, with gains in professional, scientific and technical services (+33,000), administrative and support and waste management and remediation services (+28,000) and management of companies and enterprises (+9,000). The industry has added 269,000 jobs since a recent low in October 2025.
Health care added 42,000 jobs, above its 31,000 monthly average over the prior year, with hospitals up 16,000, home health care services up 11,000 and outpatient care centers up 5,000. Transportation and warehousing added 25,000 jobs, led by couriers and messengers (+17,000) and air transportation (+4,000), and has added 104,000 jobs since a recent low in February. Manufacturing employment rose 19,000 and is up 101,000 since a recent low in December 2025, led by computer and electronic product manufacturing (+7,000). Employment changed little in mining, construction, wholesale and retail trade, information, financial activities, social assistance, leisure and hospitality, other services and government.
Average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose 14 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $38.00, and are up 3.1 percent over the year. Earnings for production and nonsupervisory employees rose 12 cents to $32.75. The average workweek held at 34.4 hours; in manufacturing it was 40.5 hours, with overtime edging up 0.1 hour to 3.1 hours.
The labor force participation rate was 61.9 percent and the employment-population ratio 59.3 percent, both little changed since January. The number of people working part time for economic reasons rose by 339,000 to 4.8 million. Long-term unemployment stood at 2.0 million, accounting for 27.6 percent of all unemployed people.
BLS also revised August payrolls up by 53,000, from 133,000 to 186,000, and September up by 31,000, from 29,000 to 60,000, a combined 84,000 more jobs than previously reported. The Employment Situation for November 2026 is scheduled for release on Friday, December 4, at 8:30 a.m. ET. (Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于华盛顿的美国劳工部总部 Frances Perkins 大楼（劳工统计局隶属劳工部）。美国劳工部，CC BY 2.0，Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The Frances Perkins Building, headquarters of the U.S. Department of Labor in Washington, home department of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Department of Labor, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
