A Stalled Labour Market The data points to a “slow hire, no fireˮ environment. Companies are largely retaining existing staff but remain cautious about adding new roles. Labour mobility has weakened, resulting in fewer workers moving into higher-paying positions. This limits opportunities for wage growth and could keep household confidence subdued. The median duration of unemployment fell to 11.1 weeks, the number of people working part time for economic reasons increased by around 980,000 compared with one year ago. These figures suggest that while job creation is weak, the labour market is not deteriorating sharply. Participation among prime-age workers remains high. The labour force participation rate stood at 89.5 percent for men aged 2554 and 78.1 percent for women in the same age group. These levels indicate that most people who want to work are still engaged in the labour market. Revisions Cloud the Picture Recent data revisions complicate the outlook. A net downward adjustment of 76,000 jobs across October and November now implies an average monthly job loss of 22,333 over the past three months. Further benchmark revisions to both the establishment and household surveys are expected in the coming months. These revisions could significantly reduce reported job gains and alter perceptions of both employment growth and the unemployment rate. Productivity Is the Key Driver
Figure 6. Labour Productivity for Non-Farm Business (Souce: US Bureau of Labour Statistics)