Jobs-Day Guide: U.S. Payrolls, Hourly Earnings, Participation

Here’s what to look for when the Labor Department releases the October U.S. employment report today at 8:30 a.m. in Washington:

-- Payrolls, jobless rate: Employers added a net 235,000 workers to payrolls in October after 248,000 a month earlier, according to the Bloomberg survey median. The gain would keep the labor market on course for its best annual performance since 1999, when an average 265,000 Americans found jobs every month. The unemployment rate is forecast to hold at 5.9 percent in October, matching the lowest since July 2008.