Employment by Industry: April’s Deceleration a Surprise

The U.S. labor market had a disappointing showing in April as employment’s recovery hit a snag. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that employers added just 266,000 workers to their payrolls in April, a far cry from the 770,000 new jobs added in March and 536,000 in February.

Following the fastest gain in over 12 months in March, experts expected April’s workforce to grow by nearly 1.0 million. The final result, at about one-quarter of that prediction, was largely attributed to the continuation of enhanced unemployment benefits and some seasonal factors that skewed expectations for job creation. Employment in leisure and hospitality increased by 331,000, as pandemic-related restrictions continued to ease in many parts of the country. However, those jobs were partially offset by losses in temporary help services and in couriers and messengers.

David Schollaert

David Schollaert is deputy editor-in-chief for Steel Market Update. David joined SMU after more than a decade in the metals and mining industry in a myriad of different roles. Much of his early experience and expertise were within the coverage and analysis of steel-making raw materials and served previously as senior editor of the CRU Prices Service. Most recently, however, before his return to market analysis, David held roles as a metals buyer and an operations manager for raw material suppliers. He can be contacted at david@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-720-1008.

David Schollaert

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