U.S. Jobs Figures Show Upturn in Economic Recovery

05 August 2011

Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Austan Goolsbee says the White House will continue working with Congress to help improve the economy.

The U.S. economy added 117,000 new jobs in July as the unemployment rate ticked down to 9.1 percent, indicating a slight economic upturn as the country continues to recover from the worst recession on record.

The figures, which exceeded economists’ expectations, were released in a monthly report by the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics August 5. The department’s reports are closely monitored by international markets because the performance of the U.S. economy is strongly linked with the health of economies around the world.

“While the better than expected report is welcome news, the unemployment rate remains unacceptably high and faster growth is needed to replace the jobs lost in the downturn,” Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Austan Goolsbee said in an August 5 statement.

He called on U.S. leaders to take action by extending both the payroll tax cut and unemployment insurance, and urged them to pass pending free trade agreements and a bipartisan infrastructure bill in a widespread government effort “to help put Americans back to work.” The chairman said these steps could help the economy continue to grow, and credited government involvement with helping to add more than 2.4 million private sector jobs during the past 17 months.

Goolsbee also welcomed the increase of 154,000 jobs in total private employment from June to July, and called the growth “broad-based.” According to the report, professional and business services gained 34,000 new jobs, and at least 31,000 jobs were added to health care. Retail trade jumped by about 25,000 jobs, leisure and hospitality services went up by 17,000 and construction added about 8,000.

He said one area of significant growth was manufacturing, which increased in July by 24,000 new jobs. Goolsbee said the industry has added 289,000 jobs since the beginning of 2010, making it the “best period of manufacturing job growth in over a decade.”

Meanwhile, state and local governments accounted for the bulk of jobs lost, decreasing payrolls by 39,000 in July. He said governments have lost more than 400,000 jobs since the start of 2010. Employment declines were also significant in financial activities, which dropped by about 4,000 jobs from June to July.

The report also included upward revisions of the bureau’s previous employment estimates for June and May. June had originally come in at 18,000 new jobs, and was revised up to 46,000. May’s growth had been reported at 25,000, but was revised based on new data up to 53,000.

Economists said that though brighter than before, the three-month average remains well below the numbers needed to cut the unemployment rate. They also said the drop in the July jobless rate may stem from a decline in the labor force, as discouraged job seekers stopped looking for work.

The employment report for August is scheduled to be released September 2 and will include revisions of July’s figures.