The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ October jobs report showed stronger signs than Bloomberg economists predicted, but the unemployment rate slightly increased from 7.2 percent to 7.3 percent, ABC News reported. Despite the fact that employers added 204,000 jobs to the American market, information from the report may be skewed due to the partial government shutdown.
“Federal employees on furlough during the partial government shutdown were still considered employed in the payroll survey because they worked or received pay for the pay period that included the 12th of the month,” the BLS report stated.
Temporary unemployment rose to 448,000 employees in October, which included the number of furloughed federal workers, Forbes explained. Though the number of hours worked per week did not significantly shift, the BLS had to consider the amount of workers who were paid after the shutdown was over.
This figure may be surprising, but the Commerce Department announced that GDP grew by 2.8 percent during the third quarter–could it be that the American economy is truly bouncing back?
Boston College economics professor Robert Murphy told ABC News that he believes that the job fluctuation will continue through the holidays because “November’s report, due out in early December, will contain some ‘bounce back’ from the shutdown that will continue to cloud the Fed’s interpretation of the state of the labor market,” while many retailers are hiring temporary workers to keep up with the anticipated shopping season.
At this time, recruiters can expect that the rest of the quarter and 2014 will be much busier. If employers are feeling more confident about the market, they are more likely to post additional job postings. HR software solutions can be used to scan applications faster as well as expedite the hiring process.