Friday’s jobs report showed 92,000 positions were lost in February, sending the stock market falling. The unemployment rate rose to 4.4%, and the labor force participation rate fell to 62.0%.
However, February job loss is due to several factors that don’t reflect the strength of the underlying small-business economy. Mainly, the worst winter storm since 1996 paralyzed the Northeast, trapping people in their homes, shutting down job sites, and closing retail doors. The storm dropped two feet of snow across New England, resulting in power outages affecting 600,000 people and a state of emergency throughout the region.
Generally, the Bureau of Labor Statistics highlights such large external events affecting job creation in a special section of the jobs report. But not this time. Any analysis of the February jobs report needs to include this angle.
However, BLS did note another external factor responsible for job losses: widespread strike activity in the healthcare sector. This sector is experiencing significant labor unrest, including a major February strike of more than 31,000 Kaiser Permanente nurses and support staff in California and Hawaii.
For years, healthcare jobs have been the biggest driver of labor market growth. Some of this job creation is productive, driven by medical advancements and the needs of our aging population. But much of it is what I call quasi-governmental — positions that only exist because of trillions of dollars in annual government spending. Therefore, a decline in healthcare jobs is overdue and not necessarily a bad thing.
President Donald Trump also continued his streak in February of reducing the bloated federal workforce, freeing up resources for the private economy. Since Trump took office, he has cut 350,000 government jobs — amounting to 10% of the federal workforce — a remarkable achievement for one year. We are moving to a consumer-centric, not government-centric society.
Finally, artificial intelligence continues to depress hiring in white-collar industries. Last week, the fintech company Block, which owns Square and Cash App, announced it was cutting 40% of its workforce as it embraces AI tools. For every headline you read about a company cutting jobs due to AI, hundreds more are quietly taking similar actions.
However, in positive news, the jobs report shows real wages continue to rise, increasing 3.8% over the last year, more than 50% faster than inflation. That’s a stark contrast to the Biden administration, when living standards declined month after month. This real wage growth is helping Americans overcome the Biden affordability crisis.
Republican small business tax cuts — including restored immediate expensing, a permanent 20% Main Street deduction, and locked in lower rates — will set the economy up for a strong 2026 as the spring hiring season begins. Job Creators Network, Americans for Prosperity, and Americans for Tax Reform are teaming up for a tour of key House districts to explain the benefits of Republican tax cuts on small business job creation.
Connecting the dots between Main Street tax relief and job creation, rising wages, and economic activity is crucial to selling this legislative victory. Ordinary Americans will see it with their own eyes in the months to come.
Alfredo Ortiz is CEO of Job Creators Network, author of “The Real Race Revolutionaries,” and co-host of The Main Street Matters podcast.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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