Construction jobs rise for two straight months; spending is mixed; wages cool down

Nonfarm payroll employment in April jumped by 290,000, seasonally adjusted, but the unemployment rate also rose, to 9.9 percent, as rising job prospects drew more job-seekers, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday [May 7]. Construction employment climbed for the second straight month, by 14,000 (0.2 percent), and the March increase was revised up to 26,000 from an initial estimate of 15,000. Despite the two-month rise, employment in April totaled only 5,625,000, down 554,000 (9.0 percent) from a year before and 2,100,000 (27 percent) from the peak in August 2006. In both months, the gains were limited to nonresidential categories, which added 24,600 jobs in April and 36,500 in March: nonresidential specialty contractors (6,200 and 15,500), nonresidential building (9,200 and 12,300), and heavy and civil engineering construction (9,200 and 8,700), according to a May 10 Data DIGest report.

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