Washington, D.C. — Recent data show the labor market continued to slow in September, even as the Trump administration’s shutdown prevented the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from releasing its monthly jobs report. A new Center for American Progress analysis of private sector data finds likely September job losses and the weakest reported hiring plans since the height of the Great Recession.
“The labor market is weak, but we’re still waiting to see exactly how much it has slowed,” said Christian E. Weller, senior fellow at CAP and professor of public policy at the McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies at the University of Massachusetts Boston. “The data we do have leave no doubt that the slowdown in hiring we’ve seen in our economy continued in September.”
The analysis points to data showing:
- Private sector payrolls fell by 32,000 in September, a measure that has historically tracked closely with BLS data.
- Announced private sector hiring plans fell to 204,939 positions, the lowest level since 2009.
- Public sector employment continued to erode, with an estimated 100,000 federal civil servants leaving employment at the end of September.
Read the analysis: “Job Market Slowdown Continues” by Christian E. Weller
For more information or to speak with an expert, please contact Christian Unkenholz at [email protected].