1. U.S. Economic Data
Michael J. Shafran, Vice President, National Sales
Adecco
As of May 2012
Reflective of the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ “The Employment Situation – April 2012”
2. The national unemployment rate declined for the
second consecutive month
JOBS GAINED IN APRIL
115,000
UNEMPLOYMENT RATE
8.1%
LOWEST UNEMPLOYMENT
RATE SINCE
February 2009
7. Sector changes observed in April
Employment by Selected Industries
(Changes from March – April 2012,
in Thousands)
Temporary
Finance
Healthcare
Legal
Leisure & Hospitality
Manufacturing
Professional & Business Services
Retail Trade
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Source: BLS
8. Education remained a job search differentiator
Less than high school 12.5%
High school diploma 7.9%
Some college 7.6%
College educated 4.0%
National average 8.1%
* National unemployment average, according to education levels
Source: BLS
9. A snapshot of metropolitan unemployment figures
Source: BLS
11. The national labor force participation rate
Sources: BLS, WashingtonPost.com
12. Changes in the labor force
Source: EconomyWatch.MSNBC.MSN.com
13. A look back on past recessions and recoveries
Sources: Labor Department, The Wall Street Journal
14. A snapshot of Americans unable to find full-time work
* In millions
Sources: Economix.Blogs.NYTimes.com, BLS
15. In Summary
The national unemployment rate declined for the second straight month in
April, to 8.1 percent, which is the lowest it has been since February 2009.
Opportunities
• The professional and business services sector added 62,000 new jobs to the
national economy in April.
• Employment within the retail trade and manufacturing industries increased by
29,300 and 16,000, respectively, last month.
• In the meantime, the healthcare and temporary help services industries
generated 19,000 and 21,100 new jobs, respectively.
Weaknesses
• Hiring continued to dwindle, as only 115,000 new jobs were created last
month.
• Employment within the information and transportation and warehousing
sectors diminished by 2,000 and 16,600, respectively.
