U.S. Employers Add 172,000 May Jobs as Hiring Rebounds From 2025 Freeze
Updated
Updated · The Atlantic · Jun 18
U.S. Employers Add 172,000 May Jobs as Hiring Rebounds From 2025 Freeze
3 articles · Updated · The Atlantic · Jun 18
Summary
172,000 jobs were added in May across leisure and hospitality, local government, construction, manufacturing and health care, extending a three-month pickup in U.S. hiring.
114,000 jobs a month have been added on average in 2026, a sharp turn from roughly 10,000 a month in 2025, when hiring slowed even as unemployment held at 4.3%.
Businesses appear more willing to hire as tariff uncertainty has eased, the drag from Trump's immigration crackdown may have bottomed out, and tax breaks and AI spending improve confidence.
The rebound is still a modest normalization rather than a boom: inflation is accelerating, wage growth remains relatively slow, and the Fed has signaled rates could rise later.