Tape Measures Fed's Nerve

The jump in employment last month was due to a substantial increase in several service-providing industries, the Labor Department said. Jobs were also added in the construction and manufacturing sectors.

Manufacturing employment rose by 21,000 in the month, with most of the gain (20,000) coming from durable goods manufacturing. Construction added 18,000.

Professional and business services employment rose by 123,000 in April. Within employment services, temporary help services added 35,000 jobs in April. Retail trade has added 103,000 jobs and employment increased by 30,000 in health care and social assistance over the month. Food services added 34,000 jobs.

Average hourly earnings rose 0.3%, slightly above economists' 0.2% estimate. The average workweek held steady at 33.7 hours but total hours worked rose by 0.3%. The factory workweek fell by 0.3 hours to 40.6 hours.

A separate survey of households showed that 278,000 jobs were added last month. The household survey covers about 60,000 homes while the payroll survey covers over 400,000 businesses. The number of unemployed workers who have been out of work for six months or more fell by 188,000 to 1.8 million.

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