Unemployment rate and new jobs decline

The Labor Department released two reports on Friday. The first detailed that the economy added 210,000 new jobs in November, far below forecasts of 550,000. It was the weakest monthly gain in a year, and it represents less than half the number of jobs added in October. But the lack of jobs did not appear to affect unemployment. The latest data shows 1.1 million people said they found new jobs last month, decreasing the unemployment rate from 4.6 to 4.2 percent.

Why the difference? Economists are calling the Labor Department’s numbers “a tale of two surveys.” Entertainment and restaurant industries drastically slowed hiring in November, and retailers cut 20,000 positions. This shows that seasonal hiring will not be strong during the holidays. But transportation, warehousing, and construction added more than 80,000 jobs. The unemployment rate only counts people who are actively looking for a job, but data show 600,000 people who were not looking for a job returned to the workforce in November.

Dig deeper: Listen to financial analyst David Bahnsen discuss how economics and culture are intertwined.