“Things are picking up.
The report is likely to ease some pressure on President Joe Biden over the labor market’s slower-than-expected recovery.
The leisure and hospitality industry, which has complained of a labor shortage, saw the largest gains, adding 343,000 jobs last month, according to the report.
While the June jobs figure would be considered outstanding during normal economic times, it is still nowhere near the kind of growth needed to quickly restore the jobs that remain missing since Covid slammed the U.S.
“Americans are going back to work in large numbers, but this is no time to let up,” said Labor Secretary Marty Walsh.
“Our recovery is helping us flip the script.
The labor force participation rate, which measures how many people are currently working or actively seeking work, didn’t budge, though the overall labor force did increase by 151,000.
So far, 26 states, nearly all GOP-led, have opted to end their participation in the federal programs weeks before the September expiration date, although the effect of those moves barely showed up in the June report.