U.S. employers added a whopping 353,000 jobs in January, more than economists expected and confounding fears of an economic slowdown.
The massive figure is nearly double the 185,000 job gain economists expected, and a sharp increase from December’s faster-than-expected 216,000 job gain and November’s 199,000 job gain. .
The Labor Department said Friday that the largest job growth was in professional and business services, which added 74,000 jobs in January, well above the average monthly increase of 14,000.
Employment in the mining and oil sectors overall fell, although jobs in health care, retail and social services also increased.
The unemployment rate in January remained flat at 3.7% for the third consecutive month. This figure was slightly lower than the 3.8% expected by economists.
Average hourly wages, a key indicator of inflation, rose 19 cents to $34.55.
The January jobs report is the first since the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting, which ended on Wednesday with central bankers unanimously voting to keep interest rates at their current 22-year high. This is the first major economic indicator.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell also dashed Wall Street’s hopes that the first of three highly anticipated interest rate cuts could occur in March.
“I don’t think it’s likely that the committee will reach a level of confidence to cut rates by the time it meets in March, but that’s something we’ll see,” Powell said at a closely watched news conference after the policy meeting.
Central bankers have struggled to cause enough of an economic slowdown to curb inflation. The latest consumer price index, which tracks changes in the cost of everyday goods and services, showed inflation rose by a stronger-than-expected 3.4% in December.
CPI statistics for January will be released on February 13th.
Chairman Powell has blamed stubbornly high inflation on the resilience of the labor market.
“While it would be appropriate to begin tapering policy restraints at some point this year, the economy has surprised forecasters in many ways since the pandemic, and we remain committed to continuing toward our 2% inflation target,” Powell said Wednesday. Progress is not guaranteed.”
A separate report released by the Labor Department on Tuesday showed that: The number of job openings reached 9 million in December, another sign of a strong labor market.
The number of job openings rose from 8.9 million in November, but the figure itself was revised upward in a government report on Tuesday.
The number of job openings has declined slowly but steadily since reaching a record 12 million in March 2022, but remains at historic highs. Until 2021, the number of monthly openings never exceeded 8 million.
Layoffs continued to rise in December, but the number of Americans who left their jobs fell to its lowest level since January 2021. This reflects a wavering confidence in their ability to find a better job.
Chipotle recently expanded its employee benefits package. The California-based company said it plans to add 19,000 employees for the upcoming “burrito season” and hopes to attract and retain Gen Z workers.
The fast-casual chain, which has more than 3,300 locations nationwide, announced it will match up to 4% of an employee’s salary through 401(k) contributions when paying off student loans. You have to choose between paying off your student loans and saving for retirement. ”
New hires will also be given access to Cred.ai, which has been dubbed the “Tesla of banking” because of its high-tech Visa credit card, which is designed to limit spending so customers don’t fall into debt.
Additionally, Chipotle has partnered with SoFi to provide employees with access to a “financial health education platform” that includes an “assessment of your current financial outlook” and “suggestions and tools for improvement.”
In addition to the financial benefits, the company, whose workforce is now made up of more than 73% Gen Z members between the ages of 11 and 26, is also offering employees six free sessions with a qualified counselor or mental health coach. providing.
The new benefits are all part of Chipotle’s plan to ramp up hiring during the busy season from March to May.
