Job growth returned to the U.S. in January, though it fell slightly short of projections. Non-farm payrolls increased by 49,000 while the unemployment rate fell to 6.3%, according to numbers posted Friday by the Labor Department said Friday. It was the first employment report of the Biden administration.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for growth of 50,000 and the unemployment to remain at 6.7%.
Though the employment picture remains challenging, 2021 marked a return to gains after a one-month lull in December that saw the first negative number since the recovery began in May.
Millions remain out of work south of the border, after companies slashed jobs in March and April 2020 to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. More than half those losses have been recovered since, but most sectors remain below their pre-pandemic levels.
The damage has been particularly acute in the hospitality industry, as governments across the country have forced hotels, bars and restaurants either to close or operate at reduced capacity to halt the coronavirus spread.
The department also said the hospitality sector lost another 61,000 jobs in the months after suffering a downwardly revised exodus of 536,000 in December.
December’s numbers overall moved lower, with the month posting a loss of 227,000 from the initial estimate of 227,000. November’s gains also were revised sharply lower, to 264,000 from 336,000.
