Economics
Breakneck Pace of U.S. Job Gains Will Get Tougher to Sustain
- Unemployment falls to 3.8% amid smaller pool of skilled help
- Situation may bode well for a pickup in workers’ earnings
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U.S. job growth in May vaulted payroll gains above 1 million in 2018, reaching the milestone a month earlier than in the past two years. Whether the labor market can maintain such a breakneck pace amid a diminishing pool of skilled workers is another question.
Employers added 223,000 jobs last month, more than forecast and bringing payroll gains for the year to 1.04 million, Labor Department figures showed Friday. The jobless rate fell to 3.8 percent to match April 2000 as the lowest since 1969, moving further below the 4.5 percent Federal Reserve officials see as sustainable in the long run. Average hourly earnings increased a larger-than-projected 2.7 percent from a year earlier.