October Jobs - A Return To Positive

October 2026 employment report: Key Takeaway’s

• Employers added 165,000 jobs in October, well above the average monthly gain of 48,000 over the prior 12 months. The unemployment rate edged down to 4.1%.

• Professional services led the way. Professional and business services added 70,000 jobs, health care added 42,000, and transportation and warehousing added 25,000. Manufacturing also posted a solid 19,000-job gain.

• Temporary help returned to positive territory. Temporary help services added 18,600 jobs in October.  It has been positive almost the entire year. 

  
  

September 2026 JOLTS

• Labor demand showed signs of improvement. Job openings increased by 333,000 to 7.5 million in September. Hires also increased by 131,000 to 5.4 million, while layoffs remained relatively stable. Quits rose to 3.4 million, suggesting workers are showing some renewed confidence in their ability to change jobs.

October delivered some welcome news for the labor market. Employers added 165,000 jobs, significantly outperforming the recent monthly average, while unemployment remained relatively stable at 4.1%. Professional and business services, health care, transportation, and manufacturing all contributed to the gains. Just as importantly, the September payroll number was revised upward from 29,000 to 60,000. That revision, combined with October's stronger performance, suggests the labor market may have more momentum than the initial September report indicated. Wage growth also remained positive, with average hourly earnings increasing 3.1% over the past year.

For the staffing industry, the most encouraging takeaway is the direction of temporary help. After a 5,600-job decline in September, temporary help employment increased by 18,600 in October. September's JOLTS report adds to the positive picture, with job openings and hiring both moving higher. We are seeing some signs that employers are becoming more comfortable adding workers and addressing staffing needs. If this momentum continues, it could provide a strong tailwind for staffing companies heading into the end of 2026 and the start of 2027.

For a deeper dive….

·       A more encompassing measure of unemployment (U6) that includes discouraged workers and those holding part-time jobs for economic rose .3% to 7.9%.

·       Prime age labor force participation rate (ages 25-54) remained flat at 83.7%.

·       The overall labor force participation increased by .1% to 61.9%.  This is 1.3% below the level of February 2020.

·       In October, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 14 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $38.00. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 3.1 percent. In October, average hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees rose by 12 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $32.75.

·       The average workweek for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls remained at 34.4 hours in October. In manufacturing, the average workweek was unchanged at 40.5 hours, and overtime edged up by 0.1 hour to 3.1 hours. The average workweek for production and nonsupervisory employees on private nonfarm payrolls declined by 0.1 hour to 33.8 hours.

·       APD reported that 86,000 jobs were added in September, above expectations.