Washington, August 06: The number of employed Americans dropped by 1,31,000 in July as the government continued to cut temporary workers hired for the Census activities, but the jobless rate remained unchanged at 9.5 per cent.
Indicating that the labour market recovery will take a longer time, private sector employment rose by just 71,000 last month, much lower than expected.
“Non-farm payroll employment declined by 1,31,000 in July, and unemployment rate remained at 9.5 per cent. The drop in employment largely reflects continued cuts in the number of temporary workers previously hired for Census 2010,” the labour department said in a statement today.
Going by the latest data, government employment declined in July as 1,43,000 temporary workers hired for the Census completed their work. On the other hand, private sector jobs was expected to increase by as much as 90,000 last month.
–Agencies