U.S. employers added 199,000 jobs in November amid slowing job growth, with the unemployment rate edging down to 3.7 percent, the U.S. Labor Department reported Friday.
Job gains occurred in healthcare and government, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Employment also increased in manufacturing, reflecting the return of workers from simultaneous strikes. Employment in retail trade declined.
The report said that employment growth is below the average monthly gain of 240,000 over the prior 12 months but is in line with job growth in recent months.
U.S. employers added a downwardly revised 262,000 jobs in September, and job growth for October remained unchanged at 150,000. With these revisions, employment in September and October combined is 35,000 lower than previously reported.
Since the recent low of 3.4 percent in April, the unemployment rate had increased by 0.5 percentage points to 3.9 percent in October, indicating slower labor market growth.
In November, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 12 cents, or 0.4 percent, to 34.10 U.S. dollars. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 4.0 percent.
