After a slight bump in March, the nation’s jobless rate slipped to 3.4%, tying it with January’s record low. That’s the lowest jobless level in 54 years.
“It has been hovering in a narrow range for many months now and underscores the ongoing tightness of the labor market,” Beth Burnham Mace, chief economist at the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care, wrote in a blog post.
The healthcare sector gained approximately 40,000 jobs in April, according to employment data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s down slightly from an average monthly gain of 47,000 over the previous six months.
Employment in continuing care retirement communities and assisted living communities grew by 3,800 jobs compared with the previous month. In skilled nursing facilities, the number was 2,600.
The labor market is tight, but the jobless rate has declined in spite of recent turmoil. The gain occurred despite the turmoil in the banking sector, Mace noted.
“The Fed is not likely to be heartened by the report in terms of observing a slowdown in the economy and inflation pressures,” the economist said, noting that the Federal Reserve again raised interest rates last week by an additional 0.25 percentage. This is the highest rate in 16 years, and the most recent in a series of quarterly rate hikes since March 2022 with the goal of reducing inflation to 2% over time.
“A decision on a pause was not made today,” Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said at the May 3 press conference announcing the rate increase. He indicated that a pause is at least a possibility.
“The Fed is looking for evidence of a softer labor market to help ease wage pressures and prevent a wage/price inflationary spiral from occurring,” Mace said.
