The latest employment data from the Department of Labor shows some mixed results for different demographic groups as the job market continues to evolve.
In August, the unemployment rate for Black Americans decreased to 6.1%, down from 6.3% in July. This decline aligns with the national trend, as the overall unemployment rate for the country also fell to 4.2% from the previous month.
For white Americans, the unemployment rate remained steady at 3.8%. However, the picture was less favorable for other groups. Unemployment rates for Asian and Hispanic workers saw increases. For Asian Americans, the rate rose to 4.1% from 3.7%, while for Hispanic workers, it crept up to 5.5% from 5.3%.
Black men saw a significant improvement in their jobless rates, which fell to 5.9% from 6.6%. In contrast, the unemployment rate for Black women remained stable at 3.4%. Hispanic women also experienced a decrease in their unemployment rate, dropping to 5% from 5.4%. Conversely, Hispanic men saw their jobless rate increase to 4.8% from 4.4%. For white men, the unemployment rate ticked up slightly to 3.6% from 3.5%, while it held steady at 3.4% for white women.
Elise Gould, a senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, highlighted positive trends in the employment-to-population ratio for prime-age women (those aged 25 to 54). “The employment-to-population ratio for women’s prime-age workers remains at a quarter-century high,” Gould told CNBC. “This remains very strong, even if there is still a little bit of softening in other measures.” She also noted that some weakness is expected as the economy approaches full employment.
The labor force participation rate, which measures the percentage of people either employed or actively seeking work, stayed the same at 62.7%. For Black Americans, this rate fell slightly to 62.7% from 63.2%. The participation rate for Asian workers dipped to 65.4% from 65.7%, while for Hispanic workers, it rose to 67.8% from 67.3%.
