Unemployment Remained Unchanged in September

Nonfarm payroll employment held steady (+51,000), and the unemployment rate
(4.6 percent) was essentially unchanged in September, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor.

Job growth continued in health care and financial activities, while employment declined in manufacturing. Employment was little changed in other major industry sectors.
  
The number of unemployed persons (6.9 million) and the unemployment rate
(4.6 percent) were essentially unchanged in September. Thus far in 2006, the
jobless rate has ranged from 4.6 to 4.8 percent.
  
Over the month, the unemployment rates for most major worker groups--adult
women (4.2 percent), teenagers (16.4 percent), whites (4.0 percent), blacks
(9.2 percent), and Hispanics (5.4 percent)--showed little or no change. 

The jobless rate for adult men (3.8 percent) declined in September.  The unemployment rate for Asians was 2.8 percent, not seasonally adjusted.
 

  
   Total employment, at 144.9 million, was essentially unchanged in September.
Over the month, both the employment-population ratio (63.1 percent) and the
labor force participation rate (66.2 percent) held steady.  Over the year, the
employment-population ratio was up slightly, and the labor force participation
rate was unchanged.