Washington, D.C. — Center for American Progress Economist Michael Madowitz released the following statement today on the June 2016 employment situation figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, or BLS. The economy added 287,000 jobs, and the unemployment rate rose slightly to 4.9 percent.
Today’s employment report is a return to the brisk pace of jobs growth we’ve seen over the last year and a relief after a month in which job growth fell short of expectations. With the unemployment rate as low as it is today and the job market coming into greater balance, even healthy job growth may not match the same rates of the past 3 years.
Between May’s below-expectations jobs report, continued weakness in Asia, and the market turmoil that followed the Brexit vote, the last several weeks were a reminder that there remain significant risks to our economy. The United States fared better than any other advanced economy in the Great Recession because our policymakers—including elected officials in both parties and at the independent Federal Reserve—came together to coordinate a more effective response than other affected economies. We’re still experiencing the considerable benefits of that action as the recovery continues.
Related resource: The State of the U.S. Labor Market: Pre-July 2016 Jobs Release by Michael Madowitz and Juliana Vigorito
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