US Adds 172,000 May Jobs as 3-Month Hiring Hits Strongest Pace Since 2024
Updated
Updated · Business Insider · Jun 14
US Adds 172,000 May Jobs as 3-Month Hiring Hits Strongest Pace Since 2024
3 articles · Updated · Business Insider · Jun 14
Summary
May payrolls rose by 172,000, while March and April were revised up to 214,000 and 179,000, giving the labor market its strongest three-month average since March 2024.
Leisure and hospitality led last month's gains, with government and healthcare also adding jobs, and April job openings climbed to their highest rate since 2024, pointing to broader hiring strength beyond healthcare.
Hiring still looks uneven: the financial activities sector lost 22,000 jobs in May, the hiring rate slipped to 3.2% in April, and white-collar fields such as tech and media remain sluggish.
Wage growth has fallen behind inflation again, with consumer prices topping 4% in May, while 27.5% of the 7 million unemployed had been out of work at least 27 weeks.
The mix of solid payroll growth and weak pay momentum suggests a labor market that is expanding again overall but remains difficult for job seekers trying to switch roles or reenter work.