January 2017

Release Date: February 3, 2017

Prepared by Analysts of the National Estimates Branch

Current Employment Statistics Survey

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

202-691-6555

Email CES

Contents

Summary

Mining & Logging

Construction

Manufacturing

Wholesale Trade

Retail Trade

Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities

Information

Financial Activities

Professional & Business Services

Private Education & Health Services

Leisure & Hospitality

Other Services

Government

Current Employment Statistics Highlights

Detailed Industry Employment Analysis

Current Employment Statistics

Highlights
Current Employment Statistics Summary, January 2017

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017

+46,000 Retail Trade 

 Employment in retail trade rose by 46,000 in 

January. Clothing and clothing accessories 

stores added 18,000 jobs; however, 

employment in this industry has shown little 

net change over the year. Elsewhere in retail 

trade, employment rose over the month in 

electronics and appliance stores (+8,000) and 

in furniture and home furnishings stores 

(+6,000).

 Nonfarm employment increased by 

227,000 in January. Retail trade, construction, 

and financial activities added jobs. 

 Average hourly earnings increased by

+3 cents over the month. Hourly earnings are 

up 2.5 percent over the year. Average weekly 

hours were unchanged at 34.4 hours. 

 The employment change for November was 

revised from +204,000 to +164,000. The 

change for December was revised from 

+156,000 to +157,000. Over the past 3 

months, job growth has averaged 183,000 per 

month.

 In accordance with annual practice, 

establishment survey data have been revised 

to reflect comprehensive counts of payroll 

jobs, or benchmarks, derived principally from 

the Quarterly Census of Employment and 

Wages, which enumerates jobs covered by 

unemployment insurance tax records. 

Nonfarm employment for March 2016 was 

revised down by (60,000 on a not seasonally 

adjusted basis). An article analyzing the 

benchmark revisions can be accessed through 

the BLS website

(www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cesbmart.pdf). 190 151 272 329 246 304 202 230 280 227 312 255 234238 86 262 344 206 254 157 100 321 272 239 126 237 225 153 43 297 291 176 249 124 164 157 227

0

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400

Jan-14 Jul-14 Jan-15 Jul-15 Jan-16 Jul-16 Jan-17

Employment in total nonfarm

Over-the-month change, January 2014–January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017.

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government
CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017

+36,000 Construction

 Construction employment increased by 

36,000 over the month, including a gain of 

9,000 in residential building. Over the year, 

construction has added 170,000 jobs, with 

residential builders (+45,000) and residential 

specialty trades (+83,000) accounting for 75 

percent of the jobs added.

+32,000 Financial Activities

 Within financial activities, employment rose 

in real estate (+10,000), credit intermediation 

(+9,000), and insurance carriers and related 

activities (+9,000) in January. Together, these 

three industries accounted for 89 percent of 

the 190,000 jobs added in financial activities 

over the past 12 months.

+39,000 Professional and Business Services 

 In January, employment continued to trend 

upward in professional and business services. 

Within the sector, computer systems design 

and related services added 13,000 jobs. Over 

the past 12 months, professional and business 

services added 574,000 jobs.

+34,000 Leisure and Hospitality 

 Employment continued to trend upward in 

leisure and hospitality in January. Over the 

past 12 months, the industry added 347,000 

jobs; food services and drinking places 

accounted for 286,000 of the jobs added.

+24,000 Education and Health Services

 In January, employment changed little in 

health care (+18,000), following an increase of 

41,000 in December. Health care has added 

374,000 jobs over the past 12 months. 

-10

16

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24

39

32

3

-1

-4

46

3

5

36

4

-40 -20 0 20 40 60

Government

Other services

Leisure and hospitality

Education and health services

Professional and business services

Financial activities*

Information

Utilities

Transportation and warehousing

Retail trade*

Wholesale trade

Manufacturing

Construction*

Mining and logging

Employment in total nonfarm

January 2017 Prior 12-month average

Over-the-month change, January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Total nonfarm:

227*

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017.

Data are preliminary.

* denotes significance

Current Employment Statistics Survey Summary, January 2017

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government
 Employment in mining edged up by 

5,000 in January. Over the past 3 

months, mining has added an average of 

4,000 jobs per month. Employment in 

the industry had declined by 243,000 

between September 2014 and October 

2016. 

 The recent employment improvement 

coincides with stronger economic 

indicators for the industry. Domestic oilrig counts increased 3.5 percent over the 

month in January, reaching 659. The 

price of West Texas Intermediate oil rose 

0.5 percent over the month to $53.01. 

5

4

66

2

55

1

5

-5

-1

-4

-8

-12

-14

-16

-22

-3

-11

-13

-17

-9

-16

-10

-15

-18-18

-9

-9

-6

-4

-3

0

-2

7

2

4

-30

-25

-20

-15

-10

-5

0

5

10

15

Jan-14 Jul-14 Jan-15 Jul-15 Jan-16 Jul-16 Jan-17

Employment in mining and logging

Over-the-month change, January 2014–January 2017

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017. 

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Mining and Logging 

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
 Construction added 36,000 jobs in 

January. Employment in construction of 

buildings edged up by 13,000, with the 

majority in residential buildings (+9,000). 

Within residential specialty trade 

contractors, employment continued to 

trend up (+11,000).

 Over the year, construction firms have 

added 170,000 jobs – largely in 

residential building (+45,000) and 

residential specialty trades (+83,000). 56 21 3739 26 20 42 30 27 20 18 23 44 26

-11 44 37 14 21 15

8 44 55 39 11 23 43

-1

-14

0 18

-4 23 16 28

2 36

-40

-20

0

20

40

60

80

Jan-14 Jul-14 Jan-15 Jul-15 Jan-16 Jul-16 Jan-17

Employment in construction

Over-the-month change, January 2014–January 2017

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017. 

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Construction

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
 Manufacturing employment changed 

little in January (+5,000).

 The 1-month diffusion index declined 

by 7.0 points to 48.1 in January. A value 

below 50 indicates that more 

manufacturing industries are losing jobs 

than gaining. 

 Average weekly hours in 

manufacturing increased by 0.1 hours to 

40.8 hours for all employees and were 

unchanged at 41.8 hours for production 

employees.

5 22 1517

8 21 13 24 17 27 23 168

7 13

2 16

1 14

-5

-1

7

-7 13 28

-12

-20

1

-21 1212

-17

-12

-5

0 11

5

-30

-20

-10

0

10

20

30

40

50

Jan-14 Jul-14 Jan-15 Jul-15 Jan-16 Jul-16 Jan-17

Employment in manufacturing

Over-the-month change, January 2014–January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017.

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

Manufacturing

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
 Employment in wholesale trade changed little in January 

(+3,000), matching the average monthly change over the prior 12 

months.

5,200

5,400

5,600

5,800

6,000

6,200

Jan-07 Jan-09 Jan-11 Jan-13 Jan-15 Jan-17

Employment in wholesale trade

January 2017 Level: 5,891

OTM Change: 3

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017.

Shaded area represents recession as denoted by the National Bureau of Economic Research. 

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

* denotes significance

January 2007–January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Wholesale Trade

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade:

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
 Retail trade added 46,000 jobs, seasonally adjusted, in January. The 

industries within retail trade that usually increase hiring for the holidays 

laid off fewer seasonal workers in January, compared to the prior 5-year 

average. This smaller layoff contributed to the seasonally adjusted 

employment gain in January, particularly in furniture and home furnishings 

stores (+6,000), electronics and appliance stores (+8,000), and in clothing 

and clothing accessories stores (+18,000).

 

Level Percent2 Level Percent3

2011 703 6.4 -517 73.6

2012 744 6.8 -560 75.2

2013 813 7.3 -623 76.6

2014 775 6.9 -590 76.1

2015 707 6.2 -558 78.9

Average 748 6.7 -569 76.1

2016 670 5.8 -477 71.2

Retail Trade1

Holiday Season Employment Buildup

(Not seasonally adjusted, in thousands)

Year

Total Holiday Buildup Holiday Layoff Through January

1Includes employment only from furniture and home furnishings stores, electronics and appliance stores, 

food and beverage stores, health and personal care stores, clothing and clothing accessories stores, 

sporting goods, hobby, book, and music stores, general merchandise stores, miscellaneous store retailers, 

and nonstore retailers.

2Total October-December holiday buildup as a percent of the September level of employment

3

January layoff as a percent of total holiday buildup

Retail Trade

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade:

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government
 Employment in transportation and 

warehousing changed little in January 

(-4,000). Both rail transportation (-1,000)

and couriers and messengers (-7,000) 

lost jobs, while warehousing and storage 

added 9,000 jobs. Over the year, 

transportation and warehousing has 

added 108,000 jobs. 18

0 15 13 28 22 22 13 18 2526 20 22

7 12 10 19 24 22

8 14

-1 35 14

-14

3 12 11

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40

Jan-14 Jul-14 Jan-15 Jul-15 Jan-16 Jul-16 Jan-17

Employment in transportation and warehousing

Over-the-month change, January 2014–January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017.

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

Transportation and Warehousing

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
 Employment in utilities was essentially 

unchanged in January.

542

544

546

548

550

552

554

556

558

560

562

564

566

568

Jan-07 Jan-09 Jan-11 Jan-13 Jan-15 Jan-17

Employment in utilities

January 2017 Level: 556

OTM Change: -1

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017.

Shaded area represents recession as denoted by the National Bureau of Economic Research. 

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

* denotes significance

January 2007–January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Utilities

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
 In January, information employment 

changed little (+3,000). Telecommunications 

lost 4,000 jobs, primarily concentrated in 

wired telecommunications carriers. This loss 

was offset by small changes elsewhere in 

the sector.

2,500

2,600

2,700

2,800

2,900

3,000

3,100

3,200

Jan-07 Jan-09 Jan-11 Jan-13 Jan-15 Jan-17

Employment in information

January 2017 Level: 2,767

OTM Change: 3 

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017.

Shaded area represents recession as denoted by the National Bureau of Economic Research. 

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

* denotes significance

January 2007–January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Information

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
 Employment in financial activities continued to expand in January, 

increasing by 32,000, more than double the prior 12-month average 

change of 15,000. January’s job gain also marks a recovery of the 718,000 

jobs lost since the prerecession peak in December 2006.

 Credit intermediation and related activities added 9,000 jobs in January, 

and 60,000 jobs over the year.

 

 Insurance carriers and related activities added 9,000 jobs in January, 

more than double the prior 12-month average of +4,000. Since its most 

recent peak in July 2008, employment in insurance carriers and related 

activities recovered and has expanded above that peak by 201,000.

 

 Employment in real estate, rental, and leasing increased by 12,000 in 

January; real estate drove the gains (+10,000).

 

8.9

4.0

1.2

1.8

1.9

9.0

11.8

10.2

-5 0 5 10 15

Credit intermediation and related activities *

- Commercial banking ͦ *

 -- Nondepository credit intermediation

 -- Activities related to credit intermediation

Securities, commodity contracts, investments

Insurance carriers and related activities *

Real estate and rental and leasing *

 -- Real estate *

Employment in selected financial activities

Over-the-month change, January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Jan-17 Prior 6-month average

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 3, 2017.

Data are preliminary.

* denotes significance

ͦdenotes component of depository credit intermediation (not shown)

Financial

Activities: 32*

Financial Activities

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government
 In January, professional and business services employment continued to 

trend up (+39,000). The employment change in professional and technical 

services (+23,000) remained in-line with the industry’s prior 12-month 

average. Job growth in this industry was led by computer systems design 

and related services (+13,000) and other professional and technical 

services (+8,000). 

 Administrative and waste services employment changed little (+12,000) 

in January, below the industry’s prior 3-, 6-, and 12-month average 

monthly changes. 

 

60

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43

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40

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43

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44

27

56

72

27

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23

55

74

58

38

31

2

80

41

56

-5

25 26

66

28

59

84

31

83

55

46

32

39

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20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

Jan-14 Jul-14 Jan-15 Jul-15 Jan-16 Jul-16 Jan-17

Employment in professional and business services

Over-the-month change, January 2014 - January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Over-the-month change Annual average

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 3, 2017. Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

Jan-17: 39

Prior-12: 44

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13

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Accounting and bookkeeping

Legal

Management and technical

consulting

Advertising and related

Specialized design

Scientific research and

development

Architectural and

engineering

Other professional and

technical*

Computer systems design

and related*

Employment in professional and technical services

Over-the-month change, January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Jan-17 Prior-12

Jan-17: 23

Prior-12: 25

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Cuirrent Employment Statistics survey, February 3, 2017. Most recent data are preliminary. 

* denotes significance.

Professional and business services

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government
 Employment in education and health 

services changed little in January 

(+24,000). Over the prior 6 months, 

education and health services has gained 

an average of 44,000 jobs per month. 

 Following a gain of 41,000 in 

December, employment in health care 

changed little (+18,000), due to 

weakness in offices of physicians 

(+1,000) and in hospitals (+4,000). 32 21 39 26 58 39 44 50 3840 47 46 65 50 35 77 49 46 5153 40 83 43 52 16 74 35 52 49 59 41 53 48 45 31 45 24

-20

0

20

40

60

80

100

Jan-14 Jul-14 Jan-15 Jul-15 Jan-16 Jul-16 Jan-17

Employment in education and health services

Over-the-month change, January 2014–January 2017

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017. 

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Private Education and Health Services

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
 In January, leisure and hospitality 

employment continued to trend up 

(+34,000), largely in food services and 

drinking places (+30,000). The gain 

within food services was driven primarily 

by limited-service restaurants. 

30

-4

9

-10 -5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

Food services and drinking places

Accommodation

Arts, entertainment, and recreation

Employment in leisure and hospitality

January 2017 Prior 6-month average

Over-the-month change, January 2017

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Leisure and 

hospitality:

34

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017.

Data are preliminary.

* denotes significance

Leisure and Hospitality

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
 Employment in other services

changed little in January (+16,000). This 

industry has added 70,000 jobs over the 

year. Personal and laundry services 

accounted for 62 percent of the job 

gains over this 12-month period. 11

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7

9

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4

33

5

1

-8

5 15 10

4 11

88

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3

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2 15

-6

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0

66

1

7 11

-4 11

-10

0 10

9 12

-4 17

6

4

-7 16

2 10 13

3

7

-17 16

-30

-20

-10

0

10

20

30

Jan-12 Jul-12 Jan-13 Jul-13 Jan-14 Jul-14 Jan-15 Jul-15 Jan-16 Jul-16 Jan-17

Employment in other services

Over-the-month change, January 2012–January 2017

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017. 

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Other Services

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
 Government employment continued 

its recent downward trend in January 

(-10,000). Over the past 4 months, 

employment in government has edged 

down by an average 10,000 per month. 

-14 12 11 30

-6 45

-24

-8 43 13 10 15

7 16

-11 27 20 1115 42

-16

7 12 22 1616 36

-5 2628 42 33 26

-8

-14

-8

-10

-60

-40

-20

0

20

40

60

Jan-14 Jul-14 Jan-15 Jul-15 Jan-16 Jul-16 Jan-17

Employment in government

Over-the-month change, January 2014–January 2017

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Employment Statistics survey, February 03, 2017. 

Most recent 2 months of data are preliminary.

Seasonally adjusted, in thousands

Government

Summary Mining & 

Logging Construction Manufacturing

Trade: 

Wholesale

Retail

Transp., 

Warehousing

& Utilities

Information Financial

Activities

Professional

& Business

Services

Private

Education

& Health

Services

Leisure & 

Hospitality

Other

Services Government

CES Highlights Release Date: February 3, 2017
Prepared by Staff of the National Estimates Branch

Current Employment Statistics Survey

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

202-691-6555

Email CES

CES Analysts

Michael Calvillo

Wander Cedeño

Tyler Downing

Brittney Forbes

Mike McCall

Michael Osifalujo

Edward Park

Jay Stuart

Julia Wolfe

Current Employment Statistics Highlights

Detailed Industry Employment Analysis