by Tula Connell, Mar 4, 2011
The number of U.S. jobs increased by 192, 000 in February, with the unemployment rate declining to 8.9 percent from 9 percent in February, according to new Bureau of Labor Statistics data out this morning.
Job gains occurred in manufacturing (33,000), construction (33,000), and several service-providing industries. Health care employment continues to increase, rising by 34,000 last month. Since a recent low in February 2010, total payroll employment has grown by 1.3 million, or an average of 106,000 per month.
The economy needs to add about 150,000 new jobs each month to keep up with the growth in the labor force. But to lower the nation’s unemployment rate to 6 percent by 2013 and make up for the more than 7 million jobs lost due to the recession, the economy needs to add 350,000 jobs a month.
