Employment Situation Summary 03/04/05

THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION: FEBRUARY 2005

Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 262,000 in February and the unem- ployment rate edged up to 5.4 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Job growth occurred in both goods- producing and service-providing industries.

Unemployment (Household Survey Data)

In February, both the number of unemployed persons, 8.0 million, and the un- employment rate, 5.4 percent, returned to their December levels after dipping in January. The jobless rate had been either 5.4 or 5.5 percent during each of the last 6 months of 2004. In February, the unemployment rates for the major worker groups--adult men (4.9 percent), adult women (4.7 percent), teen- agers (17.5 percent), whites (4.6 percent), blacks (10.9 percent), and Hispanics or Latinos (6.4 percent)--showed little change. The unemployment rate for Asians was 4.5 percent in February, not seasonally adjusted. (See tables A-1, A-2, and A-3.) FULL TEXT and CHARTS

Technical information:
Household data: (202) 691-6378 USDL 05-345 http://www.bls.gov/cps/
Establishment data: 691-6555 http://www.bls.gov/ces/ Media contact: 691-5902
Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until 8:30 A.M. (EST), Friday, March 4, 2005.