Jobs, jobs, jobs. The American economy and American politics are all about jobs. President Trump has made jobs for American workers a priority of his second administration, and on the whole, he seems to be succeeding at that. The May jobs report is in, and overall, it's positive; the report reflects U.S. payrolls growing by 172,000 in May, more than expected, while unemployment remains steady.
Job growth unexpectedly surged in May as the U.S. labor market continued a solid year of expansion, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.
Nonfarm payrolls jumped a seasonally adjusted 172,000 for the period, down slightly from the upwardly revised 179,000 in April and far above the Dow Jones consensus estimate for 80,000. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.3%, as expected.
That's not meteoric, perhaps, but it's substantial. There are, as always, some caveats, not the least of which is just where the job growth is found.
The report came against a background of muted expectations as employers have held their ground in a low-hire, low-fire environment. While job gains have been largely concentrated in just a few sectors, layoffs also have been moderate, though some signs are building that artificial intelligence is having an impact on labor rolls.
In recent days, Federal Reserve officials have become more sanguine on the labor picture, turning their attention more to a nettlesome inflation problem that has largely taken the prospect for additional interest rate cuts off the table. The central bank has been in a holding pattern this year after lowering benchmark rates by three-quarters of a percentage point during the latter part of 2025.
The sectors mentioned that saw most of the growth were leisure and hospitality, local government, and health care. Health care is no surprise. With our aging population, that's going to be a growth field for years to come. Leisure and hospitality is a slight surprise, with high fuel costs starting to bite into the summer travel season.
What would have been great to see is more growth in manufacturing. We've been reporting on new and expanding U.S. manufacturing sites and facilities, but those things take time to bring online.
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Then, there's this:
Broader economic growth has been solid, with gross domestic product rising at a 1.6% annualized rate in the first quarter and thus far tracking at a 3% gain in the second quarter, according to the Atlanta Fed.
Again, not meteoric, but solid.
These numbers will become more and more critical as we get into late summer and fall, with the midterm elections closer at hand. Elections often turn on employment; as someone once famously said, "It's the economy, stupid," and employment figures can make or break an election. But the Trump administration policies seem to be working, and if you want an even starker example of the differences in red and blue administrations on economic matters, just look at two of our larger states: California and Texas.
You can read the entire official current employment statistics report here.
Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump’s leadership and bold policies, America’s economy is back on track.
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