According to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, non-farm payroll employment has increased by around 431,000 jobs in March. This number follows growth from previous months with 750,000 new jobs introduced in February and 504,000 new jobs in January. Although the number is a lot smaller than in previous months, it’s a good sign of things to come as the country begins to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. With employment now just 1% behind its pre-pandemic count at 1.6 million jobs, the country is on the right track to recovery.
The overall unemployment rate has continued to improve, dropping from 3.8% to 3.6% in March. Unemployment now affects 6 million people and is gradually reaching pre-pandemic levels. These rates have affected all major worker groups including adult men, adult women, teenagers, and all of the different races.
The number of temporary layoffs has also largely reached its pre-pandemic status. The count of unemployed people that quit or left their previous jobs voluntarily has dropped by 176,000 to 787,000 and the number of people that faced permanent job loss fell by 191,000 to 1.4 million. Long-term unemployment also fell by 274,000 to reach 1.4 million, representing around 23.9% of total unemployment for the month.
Another interesting statistic is that teleworking employees fell from 13% to 10%. This shows that more and more people are starting to return to work in their offices, but this statistic doesn’t show the number of workers that have adopted hybrid workflows that involve both at-home and in-office work. While teleworking will always remain a viable option, many businesses have started to see the disadvantages that it comes with, thus opting for a more balanced option that incorporates a flexible work arrangement.
The number of people unable to work due to pandemic-related business issues fell in March from 4.2 million to 2.5 million. This is great news that points to an overall recovery of the economy and more job opportunities for those that were previously in industries that were negatively affected by the pandemic.
“We’re starting to see notable job gains in virtually every industry with stronger growth in the leisure and hospitality industry,” says Giridhar Akkineni, CEO of AkkenCloud. “This is great news for the American economy. We can expect to see further growth as we leave the pandemic behind us and look toward a brighter future exceeding pre-pandemic employment levels.”
As expected, the leisure and hospitality industry has seen the largest growth with around 112,000 new jobs. While the industry is still 1.5 million jobs down from pre-pandemic levels, this is great news for one of the worst-hit industries during the global health crisis. Other major gains include the retail trade with 49,000 new jobs, manufacturing with 38,000 new jobs, and social assistance at 25,000 new jobs. All other industries had little to no change.
