FOR DELIVERY: 9:30 A.M., E.S.T.
                            FRIDAY, DECEMBER 4, 1998


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, December 4, 1998




Good morning.  I am pleased to have this opportunity to
comment on the employment and unemployment data that were
released this morning.
	Employment rose in November and the unemployment rate
edged down to 4.4 percent.  Nonfarm payroll employment
increased by 267,000, reflecting above-average gains in
services, construction, and retail trade.  Manufacturing,
however, experienced another large employment decline.
	The number of factory jobs fell by 47,000 in November
following a decline of 61,000 in October.  Since its peak in
March, manufacturing employment has fallen by 245,000.
Factory job losses in November were widespread.  The largest
were in industrial machinery (-15,000), which had its fifth
consecutive job loss, and apparel and other textiles
(-10,000), which has lost jobs almost every month since
November 1994.  Electronic equipment had its eighth
consecutive job loss (-8,000).  Other large job declines
occurred in primary metals and transportation equipment
(-7,000 each) and fabricated metals, instruments, and
textiles (-5,000 each).  In contrast to all of these losses,
employment in food processing rose by 9,000 following a
decline the previous month; lumber and wood, rubber and
plastics, and stone, clay and glass advanced by 3,000 each.
	Construction employment increased by 47,000 in November
(on a seasonally adjusted basis), following a gain of 32,000
in October.  Over the last year, job gains in construction
have totaled 310,000.
  	Services added 150,000 jobs in November, the largest
gain since May.  A sizable increase in business services
employment (55,000) was led by personnel supply and computer
and data processing services.  A related industry,
engineering and management services, continued to add
workers (30,000).  Educational services, social services,
and amusement and recreation services also extended their
growth trends.  Health services added 14,000 jobs, about
average for this year but just about two-thirds of the
average for 1997.
Retail trade employment rose by 65,000.  Strong holiday
hiring occurred in general merchandise stores, and eating
and drinking places added 30,000 workers.  In contrast, the
seasonal buildup in apparel and accessory stores and
miscellaneous retail establishments was smaller than usual,
resulting in seasonally adjusted job declines in November.
Employment in finance, insurance, and real estate rose
by 23,000, partially reflecting continued strength in that
industry’s finance component, especially mortgage brokers.
Insurance also continued its growth pattern, adding 6,000
jobs in November.  Real estate employment, which has shown
no clear trend since July, rose by 7,000 in November.
Transportation and public utilities employment
increased by 7,000, reflecting gains in water
transportation, transportation services, and public
utilities.  In contrast, employment in air transportation
edged down, while employment in trucking was unchanged.
Communications employment also was flat.
Government employment rose by 18,000, due mostly to a
large gain in local education.  At the Federal level, 6,000
jobs were lost in November.
	Average hourly earnings for production or
nonsupervisory workers rose by 3 cents for the second month
in a row.  Over the 12 months ending in November, hourly
earnings increased 46 cents, or 3.7 percent.
	The average workweek, 34.6 hours, was unchanged in
November.  Manufacturing hours fell by 0.1 hour, to 41.6,
while factory overtime was unchanged at 4.5 hours.
Turning to data from the household survey, the number
of employed people rose by 477,000 in November to a level of
132.2 million.  The employment-population ratio, at 64.1
percent, remains near its all–time high level.  The number
of unemployed persons declined slightly in November, to 6.1
million, and the unemployment rate edged down to 4.4
percent.  Over the past year, the unemployment rate has
fluctuated in the range from 4.3 to 4.7 percent.  The
unemployment rate for adult white men fell in November; the
rates for other major worker groups showed little movement.
The number of people unemployed for less than 5 weeks fell
by 389,000 to 2.5 million.
	In summary, services, construction, and retail trade
all experienced strong job gains in November, while
manufacturing employment continued to fall.  The
unemployment rate edged down to 4.4 percent.

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

CPS Publications - Historical Monthly Employment Reports: 1998 Page

CPS Main Page