U.S. Employers Cut 23,000 Jobs in July as Unemployment Rate Slips to 4.1%

U.S. employers cut 23,000 jobs in July, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday, a change the agency described as little changed. Nonfarm payroll employment had averaged a gain of 34,000 a month over the previous 12 months. The unemployment rate edged down 0.1 percentage point to 4.1 percent, with 6.9 million people unemployed.

Revisions took away more than the month added. May’s estimate was lowered by 66,000, from a gain of 129,000 to 63,000, and June’s was lowered by 37,000, from 57,000 to 20,000. Together the two months are 103,000 jobs lower than previously reported.

Government was the main source of losses. Government employment fell by 53,000, including a 50,000 drop in local government education, the bureau said. Retail trade lost 19,000 jobs and financial activities lost 14,000. Health care added 22,000 jobs, a slower pace than its 12-month average gain of 36,000. Construction showed little change over the month, the bureau said. The average workweek for all private employees held at 34.3 hours.

Average hourly earnings for all private-sector employees rose 2 cents to $37.62, up 3.2 percent from a year earlier. For production and nonsupervisory workers the average was $32.40, up 4 cents on the month.

The household survey also showed participation slipping. The labor force participation rate dropped 0.1 point to 61.4 percent and is down 0.7 point since January, and the share of adults with jobs stood at 58.9 percent. The number of people unemployed for 27 weeks or more edged down to 1.8 million, 25.5 percent of all unemployed people. The number working part time for economic reasons changed little at 4.8 million. The unemployment rate for Hispanic workers fell to 4.6 percent.

The report follows the Federal Reserve’s July 29 decision to hold its benchmark rate at 3.50 percent to 3.75 percent, with three regional bank presidents dissenting in favor of a quarter-point hike, Reuters reported. The Fed’s statement said job gains had kept pace with the workforce, that the unemployment rate had changed little, and that inflation remained elevated relative to the committee’s 2 percent goal.

Monthly estimates are revised as more survey responses arrive, as this month’s downward revisions to May and June show.