TEXT FOR DELIVERY: 9:30 A.M., E.D.T. FRIDAY, JULY 5, 1996 Advance copies of this statement are made available to the press under lock-up conditions with the explicit understanding that the data are embargoed until 8:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time. Statement of Katharine G. Abraham Commissioner Bureau of Labor Statistics Friday, July 5, 1996 Good morning. I am pleased to be here to comment on the employment and unemployment data that were released this morning. Payroll employment continued to expand in June, and the unemployment rate declined to 5.3 percent. Nonfarm payroll employment, as measured by the establishment survey, grew by 239,000 in June, following a larger increase in the prior month. The average monthly gain in nonfarm payrolls was 265,000 in the second quarter of this year, compared with 200,000 in the first quarter and 173,000 in the latter half of 1995. Much of the recent pickup in employment growth is due to strength in the retail trade industry. The industry added 75,000 workers in June, its third straight month of robust job growth following essentially no net growth in the first quarter. Almost half of the June increase in retail trade was in eating and drinking places. Retailers of building materials and garden supplies added 13,000 jobs over the month, marking the fourth consecutive month of sizable job gains for that industry, and there was continued strength among auto dealers and service stations, and furniture and home furnishings stores. The services industry added 99,000 jobs in June, slightly below the average monthly gain for the industry over the past year. Employment in business services rose by 38,000 (mostly in help supply services) and there were notable gains in hotels, and in agricultural, auto repair, and engineering and management services. Overall job growth in services was held back by an unusually small gain in health services and an employment decline in amusement and recreation. Elsewhere in the service-producing sector of the economy, June job growth totaled 21,000 in transportation, 12,000 in wholesale trade, and 11,000 in finance, insurance, and real estate. Total government employment was about unchanged, as a substantial gain in local education offset a decline among State governments and continued losses at the Federal level. Among the goods-producing industries, construction added 23,000 jobs in June, continuing its recent pattern of strong job growth. In the first half of this year, employment in construction expanded by 183,000. Manufacturing employment was essentially unchanged in June, as increases among a number of durable goods industries, notably fabricated metals and transportation equipment, were offset by losses in nondurables, especially food processing and apparel. The factory workweek edged up to 41.8 hours and overtime held at 4.6 hours. Average hourly earnings rose by 9 cents in June. This unusually large increase follows a rise of 1 cent in May (as revised) and 4 cents in April. As I often have noted, changes in hourly earnings can vary widely from month to month, so that undue significance should not be attached to any one months data. Since last summer, however, the over-the-year increases in average hourly earnings have been running ahead of those for the prior several years. Turning to the data from the household survey, the unemployment rate fell three-tenths of a percentage point to 5.3 percent in June. Among adult women, the jobless rate fell from 5.0 percent to 4.6 percent following an increase in the prior month. The jobless rates for most other major demographic groups did not change appreciably in June. Prior to June, the overall unemployment rate had hovered between 5.4 percent and 5.8 percent for 20 months. In summary, payroll employment rose in June, and the unemployment rate fell to 5.3 percent. Job growth has been stronger in the first half of 1996 than in the latter half of 1995. My colleagues and I now would be glad to answer your questions.