U.S. employers added a healthy 390,000 jobs in May, extending a streak of solid hiring that has bolstered an economy under pressure from high inflation and interest rates.
Last month’s gain reflects a still-healthy job market despite concerns that the economy will weaken in the coming months as the Federal Reserve steadily raises rates to fight inflation. The unemployment rate was unchanged at a low 3.6%, the Labor Department said Friday.
Businesses in many industries remain desperate to hire because their customers have kept spending freely despite intensifying concerns about high inflation. Americans’ finances have been buoyed by rising pay and an unusually large pile of savings that were accumulated during the pandemic, particularly by higher-income households.
Workers, in general, are enjoying nearly unprecedented bargaining power. The number of people who are quitting jobs, typically for better positions at higher pay, has been at or near a record high for six months.
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