jobs report

Jobs numbers came out today and they weren't great: Unemployment hit 4.3% and only 114,000 jobs were added to the economy in July. The U.S. economy's downshifting gears ... but there are bright spots.

Care jobs grew. Like social assistance: 9,000 new jobs in July.

Social work organizations have been calling out for more men in particular ... and with unemployment rising for men, a lot of them want jobs. So why aren't they meeting?

Today on the show: Getting more men into so-called pink-collar jobs. We learn about an experiment that showed a surprising way to encourage men into industries traditionally represented by women.

Related Episodes:
Wanted: Social workers
Ghost jobs

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U.S. employers added 272,000 jobs in May -- more than forecasters had expected. The unemployment rate inched up to 4% from 3.9% in April.

Today's jobs report shows a slight rise in unemployment to 4%. And some frustrated job seekers are growing tired of applying for job after job with no replies, sometimes asking whether the listings are even real. And this isn't just vexing for applicants. It's also haunting economists when trying to figure out how much slack there is in the labor market, and whether interest rates should be raised or lowered. Today on the show: the rise of ghost jobs. Where they're happening and why.

Related episodes:
Not too hot, not too cold: a 'Goldilocks' jobs report
The Beigie Awards: From Ghosting to Coasting

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

The Labor Department is expected to report the U.S. lost millions of jobs last month due to the coronavirus. Unemployment likely jumped to its highest level since the Great Depression.

U.S. employers added 136,000 jobs in September — a sign of continued resilience in the labor market amid growing signals that the economy is losing steam. The jobless rate was the lowest since 1969.

The Labor Department says U.S. employers added 130,000 jobs in August, fewer than private analysts had expected. The unemployment rate was unchanged at 3.7%.