The official BLS seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for May 2019 is 3.6%. There is no change since last month.
If one considers the total number of unemployed + those marginally attached to the labor force + those working part-time who want full-time work, the unemployment rate is 7.1%, as opposed to 7.3% for the last 2 months.
75,000 jobs were created in May, down from 224,000 in April. This is the worst jobs created number since September 2017 except for February 2019 when the number of jobs created was 18,000. Average hourly earnings rose by 6 cents. [BLS 6/7/19]
The Demographics of Unemployment for May 2019
Unemployment by Gender (20 years and older)
Women – 3.0% (increase since last month)
Men – 2.9% (same as last month)
Unemployment by Race
White – 3.3% (increased since last month)
Black – 6.2% (decreased since last month)
Hispanic – 4.2% (same as last month)
Asian – 2.5% (increased since last month)
Unemployment by Education (25 years & over)
Less than high school – 5.4% (same as last month)
High School – 3.5% (same as last month)
Some college – 2.8% (decreased since last month)
Bachelor’s Degree or higher – 2.1% (same as last month)
In April 2019, 24 states had unemployment rates below the national rate; 3 states had an unemployment rate that was exactly at the national rate of 3.6%; 23 states and D.C. had unemployment rates that were above the national rate.
Alaska, at 6.5%, had the highest unemployment rate in the country. New Mexico, and D.C. had unemployment rates of 5.0% or more but less than 6.0%. 12 states had unemployment rates that were 4.0% or greater but less than 5.0%. [Bureau of Labor Statistics]
Adjusted for inflation the minimum wage today is 24% lower than it was in 1965. [New Yorker 5/20/19]
The surge of migrants at the southwest border hit a 13-year high in May. The Border Patrol officers encountered more than 144,000 undocumented immigrants at the southwest border. 132,000 of them were stopped while crossing the border illegally. The rest presented themselves at legal points of entry. This is the third month in a row that more than 100,000 migrants were taken into custody.
[NBC News 6/5/19]
Immigrants account for about 1 in 4 long-term and direct care workers.
| Long term care workforce | Direct care workforce | |
| U.S. born | 76.5% | 72.5% |
| Naturalized citizens |
11.9% |
13.9% |
| Legal noncitizen immigrants | 8.0% | 9.0% |
| Unauthorized immigrants | 3.6% | 4.6% |
| [Health Affairs 6/19] | ||