U.S. Employers Added 165,000 Jobs in October as Unemployment Held at 4.1%

U.S. employers added 165,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in October, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on November 6. The agency said the unemployment rate “changed little at 4.1 percent,” with 7.1 million people unemployed. The monthly payroll gain exceeded the average increase of 48,000 over the preceding 12 months. Professional and business services added 70,000 jobs, health care gained 42,000, and transportation and warehousing added 25,000. Manufacturing employment increased by 19,000, bringing its gain since December 2025 to 101,000. Within health care, hospitals added 16,000 jobs, home health care added 11,000, and outpatient care centers added 5,000. Average hourly earnings for private-sector employees rose by $0.14, or 0.4%, to $38.00, an increase of 3.1% over 12 months. The average workweek remained at 34.4 hours. The report also showed more people working part time for economic reasons: their number rose by 339,000 and reached 4.8 million. Those workers wanted full-time employment. Long-term unemployment was little changed at 2.0 million, accounting for 27.6% of unemployed people. The agency revised August payroll growth from 133,000 to 186,000 and September growth from 29,000 to 60,000, a combined upward revision of 84,000. It attributed the changes to additional employer reports and recalculated seasonal factors. Labor-force participation was little changed at 61.9%, while the employment-population ratio was 59.3%. The November employment report is scheduled for December 4, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.