American companies are hiring again at a healthy pace, adding 248,000 jobs in September, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.þþThe unemployment rate fell to 5.9 percent, the first time it had been below 6 percent since July 2008 and a continued decline from its recession peak of 10 percent.þþThe strong report was likely to buoy the outlook of economists who had worried the post-recession recovery was being sidetracked. Those fears were prompted by the government‘s earlier report on Sept. 5 that fewer jobs were added in August than in any month so far this year.þþThe pace of job creation in September, which was above many economists’ expectations, signified a return to the 200,000 level, a mark that had been surpassed each month since midwinter until the August lull.þþBut even the August numbers weren’t as bad as originally thought. The government made revisions that showed 180,000 jobs were added in August. Originally it said just 142,000 workers were added to payrolls.þþFriday’s jobs report was evidence that the end of summer’s poor showing was merely a blip. Still, the nation’s output is far from lifting off the way many economists in the immediate aftermath of the recession predicted would be the case by now.þþInstead, it is taking baby steps, slowly inching forward at a rate to which many economists and investors have become accustomed. With housing prices increasing and business investment showing strength, many analysts are optimistic that in the next six months the economy will get even stronger, as incremental as that may be.þþ“All the conditions for a strong recovery are in place,” said Robert Shapiro, co-founder and chairman of Sonecon, a financial consulting firm, in an interview before the report was released.þþBut in a report released Thursday, the Center for American Progress, a progressive think tank, pointed out that the labor force participation rate, the share of the working-age population employed or looking for a job, has been declining since the end of the recession and is generally as low as it was in the late 1970s.þþ“The labor market is much healthier today than at any point since the Great Recession,” said the report by Jackie Odum and Michael Madowitz, “but beneath the top-line numbers, it still has a long way to go before it returns to historically healthy conditions.”þþThe September jobs picture was affected by a handful of one-time events, like the return to work of about 25,000 New England grocery store employees who walked out in July, and the loss of as many as 8,000 jobs at shuttered Atlantic City casinos. But government hiring appears to be generally picking up, with 12,000 jobs added in September. Schools are finally starting to bring back more teachers.þþ“That’s a major turnaround from the draconian cuts we saw early in the cycle, which was a major drag,” said Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial. “The one downside is it’s still not a perfect world by any means.”þþSome economists were looking at the September report as an indicator of what to expect for the holiday season. A poor showing could have hurt consumer confidence and prompted shoppers to hold back on some holiday spending, said Tara Sinclair, an associate economics professor at George Washington University.þþ“It’s even more important we get a good number this month to solidify confidence,” she said.þþMs. Sinclair, who is also an economist at the online job listings site Indeed, said employers were showing optimism about the holiday season. Many, she said, are already advertising for seasonal jobs.þþCorrection: October 3, 2014 þAn earlier version of this article misstated the most recent point, before last month, at which the unemployment rate was below 6 percent. It was July 2008, not June 2008.þ
Source: NY Times
