California led the nation with a 44,200 increase in payrolls, followed by Florida with 22,700 more jobs, figures from the Labor Department showed today in Washington.
While national payroll gains slowed in August compared to the previous six months, labor market indicators have shown signs of strength as an improving economy boosts demand for workers. More job growth will be needed to spur wage increases and lift consumer spending, which accounts for almost 70 percent of the economy.
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"The labor market continues to improve, perhaps at a more moderate pace," said John Silvia, chief economist at Wells Fargo Securities in Charlotte, North Carolina. "When you also look at some other indicators like hiring and quits rates, the marginally employed — a lot of these have improved."
Texas was among other states showing gains in employment. States showing declines included Michigan, Arizona and Massachusetts.
The unemployment rate rose the most in South Carolina, Georgia and Vermont. Kentucky and Michigan were among those seeing statistically significant declines in joblessness.
Georgia had the highest jobless rate in the country at 8.1 percent. North Dakota had the lowest at 2.8 percent in August.
Two surveys
State and local employment data are derived independently from the national statistics, which are typically released on the first Friday of every month. The state figures are subject to larger sampling errors because they come from smaller surveys, thus making the national figures more reliable, according to the government's Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The data on state jobs follows a report earlier this month that showed payrolls climbed 142,000 in August after six straight months of gains above 200,000. The jobless rate fell to 6.1 percent from 6.2 percent as more people left the labor force.
Federal Reserve policy makers are debating how much longer to keep interest rates near zero as they approach their goals for full employment and stable prices. At a meeting that concluded Sept. 17, central bank officials tapered monthly bond buying to $15 billion in their seventh consecutive $10 billion cut, staying on course to end the program in October.
"The labor market has yet to fully recover," Fed Chair Janet Yellen said at a press conference after the meeting. "There are still too many people who want jobs but can't find them."
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