Job Gains Were More ‘Treat Than Trick’ In October -— But Don’t Celebrate With Leftover Candy Just Yet

American employers added 165,000 jobs in October, exceeding economists’ expectations after months of sluggish hiring, although economists warned that the rebound has yet to resolve broader weaknesses facing American workers.

The unemployment rate declined from 4.2% to 4.1%, while payroll growth exceeded economists’ expectations of approximately 59,000 jobs, according to figures released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The improvement offered some relief following months of uncertainty about the labor market’s direction, but economists told the Daily Caller News Foundation that limited job opportunities, pressure on household finances and persistent inflation continue to weigh on Americans.

“October’s jobs report was more treat than trick, with hiring bouncing back after a ghoulish September,” Daniel Zhao, chief economist at Glassdoor, told the DCNF.

Private employers accounted for 159,000 of October’s new jobs, while government payrolls increased by 6,000. Professional and business services led private-sector gains, adding 70,000 positions, followed by health care with 42,000 and transportation and warehousing with 25,000. Manufacturing added 19,000 jobs, while construction shed approximately 3,000.

Within government, state payrolls increased by 8,000 jobs, driven by an increase of approximately 11,500 positions in state government education. Those gains were partially offset by the loss of approximately 2,600 jobs in other state government positions. Federal and local government employment each declined by approximately 1,000 positions, leaving overall government hiring relatively unchanged.

The report also revised hiring figures for August and September upward by a combined 84,000 jobs. August’s gain increased from 133,000 to 186,000, while September’s previously reported increase of 29,000 rose to 60,000. The revisions brought average monthly job growth over the past three months to approximately 137,000, the strongest pace since May.

Despite the improvement, Zhao cautioned that workers seeking employment continue to confront a difficult market, particularly those entering the workforce.

“Employers are still cautious about adding headcount, and early-career workers are feeling that the most,” Zhao told the DCNF.

Glassdoor’s employee confidence data showed that only approximately 43% of entry-level workers held a positive outlook toward their employers in October, compared with roughly 61% of employees at the director level and above. Confidence among entry-level workers declined 3.8 percentage points from a year earlier, the steepest drop of any seniority group, according to Zhao.