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U.S. Jobs Report for August, 2022

Despite the growing number of mass layoffs in the US in 2022 and hiring freezes nationwide, the job market continued to grow in August, making it the 20th consecutive month for job growth.

To better understand what this means for the near-term and short-term job market, it helps to get a clear view of the industries and demographics affected most.

Is the labor market growing right now?

While economists continue to call for an impending recession, The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that employment grew by 315,000 new jobs in August.

While hiring slowed from July into August, the unemployment rate rose slightly to 3.7%, up from 3.5% in July of 2022 — likely caused by college graduates entering the job market as well as the number of individuals ready to find work again and re-entering the job market.

U.S. unemployment rates by group:

• Adult women: 3.3%
• Adult men: 3.5%
• Teenagers: 10.4%
• Whites: 3.2%
• Blacks: 6.4%
• Asians: 2.8%
• Hispanics: 4.5%

Additional employment statistics for August 2022:

• 1.9 million people reported that they had been unable to work due to their employer closing or losing their business due to the pandemic.
• Among those actively looking for work or on temporary layoff in August, 523,000 persons were prevented from looking for work due to the pandemic.
• Nonfarm employment has risen by 5.8 million over the past 12 months, making total nonfarm employment 240,000 higher than its pre-pandemic level in February 2020.

U.S. industries with notable job growth in August

Professional and business services job growth

Professional and business services saw 68,000 jobs added in the month of August 2022.

Subsectors like computer systems design and related services, management and technical consulting, architectural and engineering services, and scientific research and development services all saw notable growth.

Health care job growth

Adding 48,000 jobs in August, the health care and social assistance industries have continued to grow.

As medical professionals and social assistance professionals remain in high demand, the most notable gains were seen in offices of physicians, and nursing and residential care facilities hospitals.

Retail trade job growth

With 44,000 jobs added in August, the retail trade industry saw growth in general merchandise stores, food and beverage stores, health and personal care stores, as well as building material and
garden supply stores.

Will there be more mass layoffs in 2022?

As of right now, there is no definite answer as to whether or not there will be more mass layoffs in 2022.

However, even if the trend of mass layoffs continues, there are simple strategies to follow that will ease the transition and make your job search a success.

In the meantime, if an economic downturn were to occur resulting in more mass layoffs, be sure to understand which job industries would be most and least affected by a recession.

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