Unemployment Rate Rises to 9.7 Percent

Washington, D.C. — Nonfarm payroll employment continued to decline in August (-216,000), and the unemployment rate rose to 9.7 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday, Sept. 4. Although job losses continued in many of the major industry sectors in August, the declines have moderated in recent months.

In August, the number of unemployed persons increased by 466,000 to 14.9 million, and the unemployment rate rose by 0.3 percentage point to 9.7 percent. The rate had been little changed in June and July, after increasing 0.4 or 0.5 percentage point in each month from December 2008 through May. Since the recession began in December 2007, the number of unemployed persons has risen by 7.4 million, and the unemployment rate has grown by 4.8 percentage points.

For additional information, visit http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf.