Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 559,000 in May, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, with notable gains in leisure and hospitality, public and private education, and healthcare and social assistance. In addition, the unemployment rate fell to 5.8 percent, and the number of people on temporary layoff fell to 1.8 million — down from 18.0 million at the height of the pandemic shutdowns in April 2020. Job gains in March and April were revised to 785,000 and 278,000, respectively.
In a rapid reaction comment, Oxford Economics noted, “As we have warned over the past month, singular narratives should be avoided. The May jobs is evidence that there are still multiple labor demand and labor supply constraints at play including the virus, unemployment benefits, childcare issues and early retirement
