FOR DELIVERY: 9:30 A.M., E.S.T.
                            FRIDAY, APRIL 4, 1997


Advance copies of this statement are made available to the
press under lock-up conditions with the explicit
understanding that the data are embargoed until 8:30 a.m.
Eastern Standard Time.

Statement of

Katharine G. Abraham
Commissioner
Bureau of Labor Statistics

Friday April 4, 1997




Good morning.  I am pleased to have this opportunity
to comment on the labor market data released this morning.
Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 175,000 in March.
The unemployment rate, at 5.2 percent, was about unchanged
over the month; it has ranged from 5.2 to 5.4 percent since
mid-1996.
Nearly two-thirds of March job growth occurred in
services, where employment rose by 111,000.  Business
services added 58,000 jobs, in part reflecting a sizable
gain in help supply services (25,000).  The average monthly
gain in help supply thus far this year has been 16,000;
over the past 12 months, employment in the industry has
grown by 7 percent, more than three times the rate of
growth for the rest of the nonfarm economy as a whole.
Still, I would note that the pace of job growth in help
supply services has slowed dramatically since the early
stages of this expansion.  Also within business services,
computer and data processing continued its robust pace of
job growth; indeed, employment in that relatively small
industry grew by 150,000 in the last year alone.
Employment in health services increased by 22,000, with a
large gain among hospitals.
Elsewhere in the service-producing sector of the
economy, retail employment rose by 43,000.  Employment in
department stores grew for the second month in a row,
recouping January’s decline; over the past year, nearly
100,000 jobs have been added in this industry.  Other
retailers with sizable March employment gains included food
stores, suppliers of building materials, and auto dealers.
There also was a substantial employment increase at the
wholesale level in March, as employment rose by 19,000.
This is the second large employment gain in wholesale trade
in as many months; the industry has been a steady producer
of jobs since late 1993.
Finance experienced an unusually large employment
increase in March (17,000), reflecting growth in banks and
security and mortgage brokerages.  There also was a modest
increase in transportation employment (11,000).  In
government, employment fell slightly in local education in
March, following strong growth in the prior two months.
Federal employment continued its long-term decline.
In the goods-producing sector of the economy,
manufacturing employment rose by 16,000 in March, with
substantial employment additions in lumber and wood
products and in industrial machinery.  Employment in most
other manufacturing industries showed little or no movement
over the month, with the exception of apparel, where
employment continued to recede.
The factory workweek rose two-tenths of an hour in
March to 42.1 hours and factory overtime rose by a similar
amount to 4.9 hours.  These levels are quite high by
historical standards; indeed, factory overtime is at its
highest level since we began measuring it in 1956.
Employment in construction fell slightly in March,
following very robust growth in February.  Construction
employment levels have been somewhat volatile in recent
months, reflecting unusual winter weather patterns and the
statistical difficulties inherent in adjusting for these
fluctuating seasonal conditions.  A longer-term view
suggests that underlying job growth in the industry has
been quite strong.  Since October, the average monthly
employment gain has been 30,000, somewhat above the average
monthly increase for the prior 12 months.
Average hourly earnings among private production and
nonsupervisory workers rose 5 cents in March to $12.15,
following a similarly sized increase in February.  Over the
past year, average hourly earnings have increased by 4.0
percent.  The pace of earnings growth has continued to
drift upward for several years now.
Looking at a few of the major labor market indicators
from our survey of households, the unemployment rate was
essentially unchanged in March at 5.2 percent.  The number
of unemployed persons, at 7.1 million, also differed little
from the February figure.  There was little or no change in
the jobless rates for the major demographic groups.
There was a substantial increase in total employment
in March.  Over the past year, total employment as measured
by the household survey has risen by 2.8 million (after
adjusting for the effects of population controls introduced
earlier this year).  This is roughly in line with the over-
the-year increase in payroll employment (2.7 million).  The
employment-population ratio, at 63.8 percent in March, is
at a record high.
The number of persons employed part-time who would
have preferred full-time employment, at 4.2 million,
changed little over the month.  The multiple jobholding
rate was 6.1 percent (not seasonally adjusted), basically
in line with the levels that have prevailed for several
years.
In summary, payroll employment rose moderately in
March, and the unemployment rate, at 5.2 percent, was about
unchanged.

My colleagues and I now would be glad to respond to
your questions.
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