US lost 105,000 jobs in October and added 64,000 in November, according to delayed data
The US labor market grew by more than expected last month, recovering some of the damage inflicted by the federal government shutdown, according to official data,An estimated 105,000 jobs were lost in October, and 64,000 were added in November, a highly-anticipated report showed on Tuesday,Jobs growth was higher in November than anticipated by many economists, with a consensus forecast of some 40,000 jobs added,But the headline unemployment rate continued to climb – and hit 4,6%, a four-year high, last month – amid apprehension around the strength of the US economy.
Previous estimates for overall jobs growth in August and September were also downgraded, from a drop of 4,000 to 26,000, and from growth of 119,000 to 108,000, respectively,The latest jobs numbers, typically released monthly, were delayed due to the government shutdown,Federal government jobs declined by 162,000 in October, and 6,000 in November,The latest jobs numbers arrive against a tumultuous background for the US’s economic data, once regarded as the gold standard in government data,The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) announced that full October jobs data would not be released and November’s jobs data was delayed due to the 43-day federal government shutdown.
Questions have also been raised about its accuracy.Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell warned last week that the data from the BLS should be treated with a “skeptical eye” while the hangover left from the shutdown works through the system.There are signs that the US’s job market is weakening.ADP reported US private sector employers shed about 32,000 jobs in November after adding 47,000 jobs in October.The September jobs report, released late in November due to the federal government shutdown, stated the US added 119,000 jobs, higher than economist predictions.
Unemployment rate ticked up from 4.3% to 4.4% in September, its highest level since 2021.Powell cautioned last week that jobs figures are likely worse than the numbers that have been reported and that Trump’s immigration policies have hurt labor supply, which has kept the unemployment rate relatively flat.His comments came after the Fed announced it was cutting interest rates by a quarter point, a move toward “risk management” over concerns of a weakening labor market.
“Labor supply has also come down quite sharply.So, you know, if you had a world where there is just no growth in workers and you really don’t need a lot of jobs to have full employment, some people argue that is what we are looking at,” said Powell.“So, there is an overcount in the payroll job numbers, we think, continuing, and it will be corrected.I don’t have an exact month in my head right now.Again, I think forecasters generally understand that.
We think it is about 60,000 a month, so 40,000 jobs could be negative 20, but that could be wrong by 10 or 20 in either direction.”Powell also cautioned about the veracity of the jobs report data due to the lack of data collection in October and early November due to the government shutdown.“We are going to get data, but we are going to have to look at it carefully and a somewhat skeptical eye by the January meeting,” added Powell.Economists suggested on Tuesday that the latest jobs report was unlikely to persuade policymakers on the Fed’s open market committee to ease monetary policy, and cut rates, at its next meeting.“The labor market remains weak, but the pace of deterioration probably is too slow to spur the FOMC to ease again in January,” said Samuel Tombs, chief US economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
The BLS has been under attack from the Trump administration.In August, Trump fired BLS commissioner Erika McEntarfer, hours after the July jobs report was published.Trump claimed, without evidence, the report was “rigged” to make him look bad.His nominee to replace McEntarfer, EJ Antoni, was withdrawn in late September after bipartisan criticism over his lack of qualifications.The BLS was shut down, furloughing staff, during the 43-day shutdown of the federal government and a new nominee to lead the agency has yet to be made.
The lack of leadership at the agency comes as the number of staff at the agency has shrunk under the Trump administration,The agency lost 20% of staff from fiscal year 2024, 2,058 total employees, to proposed staff levels for fiscal year 2026, 1,851 total employees,
NHS must learn lessons of Covid to overcome winter flu, say experts
With flu cases rising and resident doctors on strike from Wednesday, the NHS is under considerable pressure. But experts say lessons from the Covid pandemic could help ease the situation.A trio of UK-based academics say a three-pronged approach of increasing uptake of flu vaccines, boosting support so people can stay home when unwell, and increasing ventilation and air quality would help to protect people from influenza.“Many of the lessons we learned during the Covid pandemic about what needs to be done to ease the spread of infection still apply, although we are consistently failing to follow them,” they write in the BMJ.If such measures are not taken, they add, “people will continue to get sick and die while schools close and hospitals are overwhelmed”
Alan Milburn launches major UK review into rising inactivity among young people
A major review into rising inactivity among Britain’s young people has been launched by the former health secretary Alan Milburn, with a promise not to shy away from “uncomfortable truths” or “radical” policy solutions.A panel of health, business and policy experts, including the former John Lewis boss Charlie Mayfield, ex-Bank of England chief economist Andy Haldane and social welfare expert Dame Louise Casey, will help draw up recommendations.Milburn has also launched a call for evidence from young people and a wide range of experts to help shape the investigation, saying a “coalition of the concerned” must mobilise to save a generation not earning or learning.He is expected to examine the role of mental health issues and disability, after the number of 16- to 24-year-olds receiving health-related benefits soared, with more than a quarter of young people not in education, employment or training (Neet) now citing long-term sickness or disability.The risk of being Neet is more than double if you come from a disadvantaged background and have low qualifications
Officials fear NHS will be hit hard after resident doctors reject latest offer
Hospitals are cancelling tens of thousands of appointments and operations after resident doctors voted overwhelmingly to reject a last-ditch government offer to avoid this week’s strike.The health secretary, Wes Streeting, and the British Medical Association (BMA) are being urged to agree to see if an independent mediator can break the deadlock in the almost three-year-old pay and jobs dispute in England.NHS bosses are anxious about how hospital services will cope with what will be the 14th stoppage resident – formerly junior – doctors have staged since March 2023 when it is already struggling to cope with a fast-growing “flu-nami”. They have had to reschedule an estimated 38,500 outpatient appointments and treatments, including surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy for cancer.They also fear that consultant (senior) doctors will be too busy covering the work of their more junior colleagues during the strike to help hospitals undertake their traditional pre-Christmas clearout of patients who are well enough to leave, so they can give their beds to others who need to be admitted during the cold snap that usually causes problems during the festive season
The slow death of social housing – and its original purpose | Letters
Your editorial (The Guardian view on England’s social housing system: failing the very people it was built for, 10 December) claims that “social homes were supposed to be for those who couldn’t afford private rents”. That’s not so. Most council estates, such as Becontree and Harold Hill, were built following the first and second world wars to house ordinary working families when decent housing was in dire straits. Privately rented properties were often of poor quality and devoid of basic amenities.The governments then believed it imperative to house ordinary families in good-quality modern housing
Children need mental health care provided by humans, not chatbots | Letter
It is absolutely right that children “need a human, not a bot” for mental health support (‘I feel it’s a friend’: quarter of teenagers turn to AI chatbots for mental health support, 9 December). Overuse of AI for mental health support could well lead to the next public health emergency if the government does not take urgent action.We shouldn’t be surprised that teenagers are turning to tools such as ChatGPT in this way. NHS waiting lists are rising, and one in five young people are living with a mental health condition. It is unacceptable that young people who require support for their mental health are unable to access the services they need, before they reach crisis point
Resident doctors in England vote to go ahead with strike
Resident doctors in England will strike as planned this week after they voted to reject the government’s latest offer to end the long-running pay and jobs dispute.Resident doctors – formerly called junior doctors – will strike for five days starting on Wednesday after refusing to accept the deal in a survey by their union, the British Medical Association.The health secretary, Wes Streeting, had proposed the deal last week. It would have increased the number of training places to enable early-career doctors to start training in their chosen medical speciality but not increased their pay for the current financial year.Resident doctors overwhelmingly rejected the offer, by 83% to 17% on a 65% turnout
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