U.S. sees biggest job gains in two years

Mike W. Thomas^[1]

Reporter- San Antonio Business Journal

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.^[2]  |  Twitter^[3]  |  Google+^[4]  |  Facebook^[5]

The United States generated 288,000 jobs in April, the biggest increase in two years,^[6] as the unemployment rate fell to 6.3 percent.

The strong performance suggests the economy is picking up after a tepid first quarter. Economists polled by Bloomberg had expected an increase of just 218,000 jobs and an unemployment rate of 6.6 percent.

April’s job growth was broad based with professional jobs surging by 75,000 and retail, bars and restaurants and construction all posting big gains.

Average hourly wages remained unchanged at $24.31 and the average workweek rose a tick to 34.5 hours, matching a post-recession high. The Labor Department adjusted the number of jobs created in March to 203,000 from a preliminary 192,000, based on newly available data.

Mike W. Thomas covers technology/telecom, military, finance, regulatory issues as well as nonprofits/education.

References

1. ^{^} Mike W. Thomas (feeds.bizjournals.com)
2. ^{^} This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (feeds.bizjournals.com)
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6. ^{^} the biggest increase in two years, (www.marketwatch.com)