Nonfarm payroll employment report-

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Statement of

Philip L. Rones
Deputy Commissioner
Bureau of Labor Statistics

Friday, April 6, 2007



Nonfarm payroll employment grew by 180,000 to 137.6
million in March. The unemployment rate, at 4.4 percent,
was essentially unchanged. Construction employment rose
sharply over the month; retail trade and health care also
added jobs. Average hourly earnings increased by 6 cents,
or 0.3 percent.

Construction employment was up by 56,000 in March,
following a decline of similar magnitude in February, when
unusually adverse weather conditions contributed to the drop
in employment. March job gains were concentrated among
nonresidential specialty trade contractors, where an
increase of 34,000 more than offset a decline in February.
Residential building employment was essentially unchanged
over the month and has been trending down since last fall.
Although employment of residential specialty trade
contractors edged up in March, the increase did not offset
the drop in the previous month. Employment in this industry
has been on a downward trend since February 2006.

Retail trade employment rose by 36,000 in March,
reflecting employment growth in general merchandise stores.
Despite recent gains, employment in general merchandise
stores was little changed over the year. Elsewhere in
retail trade, employment in building material and garden
supply stores declined by 9,000 over the month.

Employment in health care continued to grow in March
(+30,000). Job gains occurred throughout the industry,
including doctors’ offices, hospitals, and nursing and
residential care facilities. In the leisure and hospitality
sector, employment in food services also continued to trend
up (+19,000).

Professional and business services employment was flat
in March. Job gains in computer systems design and
management consulting were offset by small declines
elsewhere in the professional and business services sector.

Manufacturing employment continued to trend down
(-16,000) in March, with declines in several industries
including furniture, computers and electronic products,
textile mills, and paper and paper products. Average weekly
hours in the manufacturing sector increased by two-tenths of
an hour; factory overtime was up by one-tenth of an hour.

Average hourly earnings for private production and
nonsupervisory workers rose by 6 cents to $17.22 in March.
Over the year, average hourly earnings increased by 4.0
percent.

The number of unemployed persons, 6.7 million, was
little changed in March. The unemployment rate, at 4.4
percent, has been in a narrow range of 4.4 to 4.6 percent
since last September. In March, the number of persons
unemployed less than 5 weeks fell by 273,000 to 2.3 million.
Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rate for
whites decreased to 3.8 percent over the month; the jobless
rates for other groups showed little or no change.

The labor force participation rate held at 66.2 percent
and was about unchanged over the year. The proportion of
the population that was employed was 63.3 percent in March,
little changed over the month but up slightly from a year
earlier. Among those not in the labor force, the number of
discouraged workers has edged down from March 2006.

In summary, nonfarm payroll employment rose by 180,000
in March, and the unemployment rate was essentially
unchanged at 4.4 percent.