U.S. Labor Market Update: 139,000 Jobs Added in May 2025, Unemployment Rate Holds at 4.2%

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Washington DC, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has released its latest monthly jobs report, showing a modest increase of 139,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in May, while the national unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.2%.

This report reflects continued job growth in key sectors like health care, leisure and hospitality, and social assistance, but also highlights ongoing federal government job losses.

Key Highlights from the May 2025 U.S. Jobs Report

Unemployment Rate Stable

• The unemployment rate held steady at 4.2%, consistent with the range of 4.0% to 4.2% observed since May 2024.

• There are approximately 7.2 million unemployed people in the U.S., a figure that remained largely unchanged over the month.

Unemployment by Demographics

• Adult men and women: 3.9%

• Teenagers: 13.4%

• White workers: 3.8%

• Black workers: 6.0%

• Asian workers: 3.6%

• Hispanic workers: 5.1%

These figures showed little to no change compared to April.

Job Duration and Labor Force Participation

• The number of individuals unemployed for less than 5 weeks increased by 264,000 to 2.5 million.

• The long-term unemployed (jobless for 27+ weeks) dropped by 218,000 to 1.5 million, now making up 20.4% of the unemployed population.

• Labor force participation rate fell to 62.4%, while the employment-population ratio decreased to 59.7%.

Part-Time and Marginally Attached Workers

• 4.6 million people worked part-time for economic reasons, a figure that remained stable.

• 6.0 million people not in the labor force currently want a job but were not counted as unemployed.

• The number of discouraged workers—those who believe no jobs are available—held at 381,000.

Industry Insights: Job Gains and Losses

Healthcare Sector Leads Job Growth

• +62,000 jobs in May

  • Hospitals: +30,000

  • Ambulatory care services: +29,000

  • Skilled nursing facilities: +6,000

Leisure & Hospitality Rebounds

• +48,000 jobs, mainly from food services and drinking places (+30,000)

Social Assistance

• Added 16,000 jobs, particularly in individual and family services

Federal Government Employment Falls

• Lost 22,000 jobs in May, with a total decline of 59,000 jobs since January 2025

Other Sectors Showed Little Change:

• Construction

• Manufacturing

• Retail Trade

• Professional Services

• Transportation

• Financial Activities

• Mining and Utilities

Wages and Work Hours

Wage Growth

• Average hourly earnings increased $0.15 (0.4%) to $36.24

• Over the past year, wages are up 3.9%

• Production and nonsupervisory workers earned an average of $31.18, up $0.12

Workweek Stability

• The average workweek for private nonfarm employees remained at 34.3 hours

• Manufacturing workweek: 40.1 hours

• Overtime: Unchanged at 2.9 hours

Revisions to Previous Reports

• March 2025: Revised from +185,000 to +120,000

• April 2025: Revised from +177,000 to +147,000

• Combined downward revision of 95,000 jobs

These adjustments reflect new business data and recalibrated seasonal employment factors.

What This Means for the U.S. Economy

While the May 2025 jobs report shows continued employment growth, the pace has slowed compared to previous months. Key sectors like healthcare and hospitality remain strong, but the decline in government jobs and drop in labor force participation may raise concerns about long-term labor market strength.

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