Already-shaky job market weakened in October and November

The federal government released October’s payrolls and November’s full jobs report, both of which were delayed by the historic government shutdown.

The United States shed 105,000 jobs in October and added 64,000 jobs in November, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Tuesday, lifting a monthslong fog that had shrouded the labor market.

The unemployment rate rose to 4.6% in November, the highest since September 2021.

The national employment picture already looked fragile before Tuesday’s report. Jobs reports in June and August showed net job losses, the first time since 2020 that there have been two months of contractions before November.

Commuters in Washington, D.C., in November. The Bureau of Labor Statistics released a long-awaited trove of federal jobs data Tuesday.Al Drago / Bloomberg /Getty ImagesSeptember’s report, the last one before the government shutdown, showed a more modest increase of 119,000 jobs and a little changed unemployment rate of 4.4%.

Initial payroll data from two recent months was also revised down Tuesday. “Employment in August and September combined is 33,000 lower than previously reported,” BLS wrote in a news release.