Manufacturing jobs continue to rise in November labor report

The U.S. Department of Labor released its November labor report today, and the overall takeaway shows numbers that are, well, mostly “meh” – nothing great but nothing too unpleasant.

Although November’s 155,000 new jobs were a little less than the 198,000-forecast and below the yearly 209,000-average, unemployment held at a low 3.7 percent for the third month in a row. With the labor market is moving at a steady pace to close out 2018, it’s still yet another indicator that the U.S. economy is in solid shape.

Manufacturing in particular had a stronger November with 27,000 new jobs (a 1,000-job bump from October), putting the industry’s total employment increase at around 288,000 for the year. But with President Donald Trump’s 25-percent tariff on steel and 10-percent tariff on aluminum still taking effect, metal sectors saw mixed results in November. While primary metals sector added 2,800 jobs, the fabricated metal products sector saw a drop in 1,500 jobs.

The full November Bureau of Labor Statistics report can be viewed here.