Internet address:  http://stats.bls.gov/newsrels.htm
Technical information:               USDL 98-441
   Household data: (202) 606-6378


   Establishment data:   606-6555     For release:  1:30 P.M. (EST)
Media contact:           606-5902     Thursday, November 5, 1998


                  THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION:  OCTOBER 1998
                                     
                                     
   Payroll employment grew modestly, and the unemployment rate was
unchanged at 4.6 percent in October, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the
U.S. Department of Labor reported today.  The number of payroll jobs was up
by 116,000, following a rise of 157,000 in September (as revised).  Growth
in services and most other industries in October was partly offset by a
large decline in manufacturing.  The increase in average hourly earnings
was small for the second month in a row.

Unemployment (Household Survey Data)
   
   The number of unemployed persons, 6.3 million in October, was unchanged
over the month.  The unemployment rate remained at 4.6 percent; it has been
at or below 5.0 percent since April 1997.  Among the major worker groups,
the jobless rates for adult men (3.7 percent), adult women (4.0 percent),
teenagers (16.0 percent), whites (4.0 percent), blacks (8.6 percent), and
Hispanics (7.2 percent) showed little or no change in October.  (See
tables A-1 and A-2.)
   
   Among the major educational attainment categories, the unemployment rate
for college graduates 25 years and older rose to 2.0 percent, about the
same as earlier this year.  Jobless rates for persons with less than a high
school diploma (6.8 percent), high school graduates with no college
(4.0 percent), and persons with some college experience but no bachelor's
degree (3.0 percent) showed little or no change over the month.  (See
table A-3.)
   
   The number of persons unemployed for less than 5 weeks increased by
218,000 to 2.9 million in October.  The number of unemployed who were new
entrants--persons who were looking for their first jobs--increased by
102,000.  (See tables A-6 and A-7.)
   
Total Employment and the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)
   
   Total employment was essentially unchanged over the month at 131.7
million, after seasonal adjustment.  The employment-population ratio--the
proportion of the population age 16 and older with jobs--was 63.9 percent,
little changed from the previous month.  (See table A-1.)
   
   About 8.2 million persons (not seasonally adjusted) held more than one
job in October.  These multiple jobholders comprised 6.2 percent of total
employment, the same proportion as a year earlier.  (See table A-10.)
   
   The civilian labor force also was about unchanged in October, at 138.0
million, seasonally adjusted.  Over the year, the labor force has grown by
1.9 million, after adjusting for the changes in the composite estimation 

                                  - 2 -

Table A.  Major indicators of labor market activity, seasonally adjusted
(Numbers in thousands)
___________________________________________________________________________
                      |   Quarterly     |       Monthly data       |
                      |   averages      |                          |
                      |_________________|__________________________|Sept.-
      Category        |     1998 1/     |          1998 1/         | Oct.
                      |_________________|__________________________|change
                      |   II   |  III   |  Aug.  |  Sept. |  Oct.  |
______________________|________|________|________|________|________|_______
    HOUSEHOLD DATA    |                 Labor force status
                      |____________________________________________________
Civilian labor force..| 137,351| 137,596| 137,415| 138,075| 137,976|    -99
  Employment..........| 131,349| 131,333| 131,168| 131,765| 131,677|    -88
  Unemployment........|   6,002|   6,262|   6,247|   6,310|   6,299|    -11
Not in labor force....|  67,554|  67,887|  68,064|  67,624|  67,943|    319
                      |________|________|________|________|________|_______
                      |                 Unemployment rates
                      |____________________________________________________
All workers...........|     4.4|     4.6|     4.5|     4.6|     4.6|     .0
  Adult men...........|     3.6|     3.8|     3.7|     3.8|     3.7|   -0.1
  Adult women.........|     4.0|     4.0|     4.1|     4.0|     4.0|     .0
  Teenagers...........|    14.0|    14.7|    15.0|    15.4|    16.0|     .6
  White...............|     3.8|     3.9|     4.0|     3.9|     4.0|     .1
  Black...............|     8.7|     9.3|     9.0|     9.2|     8.6|    -.6
  Hispanic origin.....|     6.9|     7.4|     7.5|     7.4|     7.2|    -.2
                      |________|________|________|________|________|_______
 ESTABLISHMENT DATA 2/|                     Employment
                      |____________________________________________________
Nonfarm employment....| 125,516|p126,136| 126,191|p126,348|p126,464|   p116
  Goods-producing 2/..|  25,315| p25,203|  25,253| p25,221| p25,183|   p-38
    Construction......|   5,931|  p5,976|   5,989|  p5,968|  p5,987|    p19
    Manufacturing.....|  18,804| p18,657|  18,693| p18,683| p18,631|   p-52
  Service-producing 2/| 100,201|p100,933| 100,938|p101,127|p101,281|   p154
    Retail trade......|  22,402| p22,567|  22,545| p22,608| p22,598|   p-10
    Services..........|  37,347| p37,687|  37,691| p37,756| p37,851|    p95
    Government........|  19,802| p19,897|  19,922| p19,942| p19,966|    p24
                      |________|________|________|________|________|_______
                      |                  Hours of work 3/
                      |____________________________________________________
Total private.........|    34.6|   p34.5|    34.6|   p34.4|   p34.6|   p0.2
  Manufacturing.......|    41.7|   p41.7|    41.7|   p41.6|   p41.8|    p.2
    Overtime..........|     4.6|    p4.6|     4.6|    p4.5|    p4.5|    p.0
                      |________|________|________|________|________|_______
                      |    Indexes of aggregate weekly hours (1982=100) 3/
                      |____________________________________________________
Total private.........|   144.6|  p145.1|   145.3|  p144.7|  p145.6|   p0.9
                      |________|________|________|________|________|_______
                      |                      Earnings 3/
                      |____________________________________________________
Avg. hourly earnings, |        |        |        |        |        |
  total private.......|  $12.73| p$12.84|  $12.85| p$12.87| p$12.88| p$0.01
Avg. weekly earnings, |        |        |        |        |        |
  total private.......|  440.46| p443.29|  444.61| p442.73| p445.65|  p2.92
______________________|________|________|________|________|________|_______
    1/ Beginning in January 1998, household data reflect new composite
estimation procedures and revised population controls.
    2/ Includes other industries, not shown separately.
    3/ Data relate to private production or nonsupervisory workers.
    p=preliminary.
   
                                  - 3 -

procedure introduced with the January 1998 data.  In October, the labor 
force participation rate was 67.0 percent, about unchanged from
the prior year.  (See table A-1.)
   
Persons Not in the Labor Force (Household Survey Data)
   
   About 1.2 million persons (not seasonally adjusted) were marginally
attached to the labor force in October.  These were people who wanted and
were available for work and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12
months but were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for
work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey.
   
   The number of discouraged workers--a subset of the marginally attached
who were not currently looking for work specifically because they believed
no jobs were available for them--was 333,000 in October, about the same as
a year earlier.  (See table A-10.)
   
                                     
Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey Data)

   Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 116,000 in October to 126.5 million,
seasonally adjusted.  Employment in manufacturing fell sharply, while the
number of jobs in construction and in several service-producing industries
grew.  Employment growth has slowed in recent months, with gains averaging
about 148,000 a month since July, compared with 247,000 during the first 7
months of the year (after adjustment for the effects of the strikes in
automobile-related manufacturing).
   
   Manufacturing employment decreased by 52,000 in October; since March it
has fallen by 198,000.  Over-the-month losses were widespread throughout
the industry.  The largest declines were in apparel (-14,000) and in
electronic equipment (-12,000).  Each of these industries has lost nearly
50,000 jobs since March.  Employment declines also occurred in October in
primary metals, industrial machinery, instruments, and miscellaneous
manufacturing.  Motor vehicles added 7,000 jobs; auto inventories were
still low, following the recent strikes and related plant shutdowns.
   
   Construction employment increased by 19,000 in October, following a loss
of similar magnitude in September.  Gains occurred in general building and
special trade contractors.  Mining continued its long-term downward trend,
shedding 5,000 jobs in October.  Since September 1997, employment in the
industry has declined by 29,000.
   
   In the service-producing sector, the services industry added 95,000 jobs
in October, more than in either of the prior 2 months, but still less than
the average for the first 7 months of 1998 (117,000).  Employment in
business services rose by 58,000, following a decline in September.  Within
business services, employment in personnel supply was up by 21,000 over the
month but remained below its June peak.  Gains in computer services and in
engineering and management services continued in October, with each
industry adding 13,000 jobs.  Since July, however, the pace of growth has
slackened in both industries.  Health services employment rose by 12,000 in
October, as continued losses in home health care services partially offset
increases in hospitals and offices and clinics of medical doctors.  Over-
the-month employment declines occurred in amusement and recreation services
(-17,000) and hotels and other lodging places (-12,000); however, these
industries had experienced strong hiring during much of the year.
   
   Employment in finance rose by 18,000 in October, following no growth in
the prior month.  Employment in commercial banks increased by 3,000, the

                                  - 4 -

first gain since March.  Mortgage brokerages had an especially large job
gain (7,000), and security brokerages continued their growth trend, adding
4,000 jobs.  Employment in real estate was little changed in October and
has shown no net growth since July.
   
   Transportation employment grew by 13,000 in October, with much of the
increase occurring in trucking (8,000).  Returning strikers accounted for
most of the 8,000 increase in employment in the communications industry.
   
   Employment in retail trade edged down in October, following a large
increase in September.  In general merchandise stores, employment declined
by 28,000 in October, following a similar increase in the prior month.
Apparel and accessory stores had an employment loss of 13,000 in October.
Other retail industries showed employment gains, with the largest occurring
in auto dealers and service stations (11,000).  Employment in wholesale
trade was little changed in October, following a substantial increase in
September.
   
   Government employment increased by 24,000 over the month, with most of
the gain taking place in federal government.  The large increase in federal
government (18,000) resulted from the hiring of workers in preparation for
the decennial census.
   
Weekly Hours (Establishment Survey Data)

   The average workweek for production or nonsupervisory workers on private
nonfarm payrolls increased by 0.2 hour in October to 34.6 hours, seasonally
adjusted, returning to its August level.  The manufacturing workweek also
increased by 0.2 hour to 41.8 hours, while factory overtime was unchanged
at 4.5 hours.  (See table B-2.)
   
   The index of aggregate weekly hours of production or nonsupervisory
workers on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 0.6 percent to 145.6
(1982=100), seasonally adjusted.  The manufacturing index increased by 0.2
percent in October to 108.0, reflecting the increase in the factory
workweek.  (See table B-5.)
   
Hourly and Weekly Earnings (Establishment Survey Data)

   Average hourly earnings of production or nonsupervisory workers on
private nonfarm payrolls edged up 1 cent in October to $12.88, seasonally
adjusted.  Average weekly earnings increased by 0.7 percent in October to
$445.65.  Over the year, both average hourly and weekly earnings have risen
by 3.6 percent.  (See table B-3.)
                                     
                 ________________________________________
   
   The Employment Situation for November 1998 is scheduled to be released
on Friday, December 4, at 8:30 A.M. (EST).
                                     
                                     
  ---------------------------------------------------------------
 |           Changes in Establishment-based Data Series          |
 |                                                               | 
 |   Following usual practice, the 6-month updates to seasonal   |
 |adjustment factors for the establishment survey data will be   |
 |introduced with next month's release of November data. These   |
 |factors will be used for the September 1998 through April 1999 |
 |estimates and will be published in the December 1998 issue of  |
 |Employment and Earnings.  As a service to users, these factors |
 |will be available about 1 week prior to the release of November|
 |estimates on the Internet (http://stats.bls.gov/ceshome.htm) or|
 |by calling (202) 606-6521.                                     |
  ---------------------------------------------------------------
                                  - 5 -

Explanatory Note


 This news release presents statistics from two major surveys, the Current
Population Survey (household survey) and the Current Employment Statistics
survey (establishment survey).  The household survey provides the
information on the labor force, employment, and unemployment that appears
in the A tables, marked HOUSEHOLD DATA.  It is a sample survey of about
50,000 households  conducted by the Bureau of the Census  for the Bureau of
Labor Statistics (BLS).
 
 The establishment survey provides the information on the employment,
hours, and earnings of workers on nonfarm payrolls that appears in the B
tables, marked ESTABLISHMENT DATA.  This information is collected from
payroll records by BLS in cooperation with State agencies.  In June 1998,
the sample included about 390,000 establishments employing about 48 million
people.
 
 For both surveys, the data for a given month  relate to a particular week
or pay period.  In the household survey,  the reference week is generally
the calendar week that contains the 12th day of the month.  In the
establishment survey, the reference  period is the pay period including the
12th, which may or may not correspond directly to the calendar week.

Coverage, definitions, and differences between surveys
 
 Household survey.  The sample  is selected  to reflect the entire
civilian noninstitutional population.  Based on responses to a series of
questions on work and job search activities, each person  16 years and over
in a sample household is classified as employed, unemployed, or not in the
labor force.
 
 People are classified as employed if they did any work at all as paid
employees during the reference week; worked in their own business,
profession, or on their own farm; or worked without pay at least 15 hours
in a family business or farm.  People are also counted as employed if they
were  temporarily absent from their jobs because of illness, bad weather,
vacation, labor-management disputes, or personal reasons.
 
 People are classified as unemployed if they meet all of the following
criteria:  They had no employment during the  reference week; they were
available for work at that time; and they made specific efforts to find
employment sometime during the 4-week period ending with the reference
week.  Persons laid off from  a job and expecting recall   need not be
looking for work to be counted as unemployed.  The unemployment data
derived from the household survey in no way depend upon the eligibility for
or receipt of unemployment insurance benefits.
 
 The civilian labor force  is the sum of  employed and  unemployed
persons.  Those not classified as employed or unemployed are not in the
labor force.  The unemployment rate is the number unemployed as a percent
of the  labor force.  The labor force participation rate is the labor force
as a percent of the population, and the employment-population ratio is the
employed as a percent of the population.
 
 Establishment survey.  The sample establishments are drawn from private
nonfarm businesses such as factories, offices, and stores, as well as
Federal, State, and local government entities.  Employees on nonfarm
payrolls are those who received pay for any part of the reference pay
period, including persons on paid leave.  Persons are counted in each job
they hold.  Hours and earnings data are for private businesses and relate
only to production workers in the goods-producing sector and nonsupervisory
workers in the service-producing sector.

                                  - 6 -
 
 Differences in employment estimates.  The numerous conceptual and
methodological differences between the household and establishment surveys
result in important distinctions in the employment estimates derived from
the surveys.  Among these are:
 
 --The household survey includes agricultural workers, the self-employed,
unpaid family workers, and private household workers among the employed.
These groups are excluded from the establishment survey.

 --The household survey includes people on unpaid leave among the
employed. The establishment survey does not.
 
 --The household survey is limited to  workers 16 years of age and older.
The establishment survey is not limited by age.
 
 --The  household survey has no duplication of individuals, because
individuals  are counted only once, even if they hold more than one job. In
the establishment survey, employees working at more than one job  and thus
appearing on more than one payroll would be counted separately for each
appearance.
 
 Other differences between the two surveys are described in   "Comparing
Employment Estimates from Household and Payroll Surveys," which may be
obtained from BLS upon request.

Seasonal adjustment
 
 Over the course of a year, the size of the nation's labor force and the
levels of employment and unemployment undergo sharp fluctuations due to
such seasonal events as changes in weather, reduced or expanded production,
harvests, major holidays, and the opening and closing of schools.  The
effect of such seasonal  variation can  be  very large; seasonal
fluctuations may account for as much as 95 percent of the month-to-month
changes in unemployment.
 
 Because these seasonal events follow a more or less regular pattern each
year, their influence on statistical trends can be eliminated by adjusting
the statistics from month to month.  These adjustments make nonseasonal
developments, such as declines in economic activity or increases in the
participation of women in the labor force, easier to spot.  For example,
the large number of youth entering the labor force each June is likely to
obscure any other changes that have taken place relative to May, making it
difficult to determine if the level of economic activity has risen or
declined.  However, because the effect of students finishing school in
previous years is known, the statistics for the current year can be
adjusted to allow for a comparable change.  Insofar as the seasonal
adjustment is made correctly, the adjusted figure provides a more useful
tool with which to analyze changes in economic activity.
 
 In both the household and establishment surveys, most seasonally adjusted
series are independently adjusted.  However, the adjusted series for many
major estimates, such as total payroll employment, employment in most major
industry divisions, total employment, and unemployment are computed by
aggregating independently adjusted component series.  For example, total
unemployment is derived by summing the adjusted series for four major age-
sex components; this differs from the unemployment estimate that would be
obtained by directly adjusting the total or by combining the duration,
reasons, or more detailed age categories.
 
 The numerical factors used to make the seasonal adjustments are
recalculated twice a year.  For the household survey, the factors are
calculated for the January-June period and again for the July-December

                                  - 7 -

period.  For the establishment survey, updated factors for seasonal
adjustment are calculated for the May-October period and introduced along
with new benchmarks, and again for the November-April period.  In both
surveys, revisions to historical data are made once a year.

Reliability of the estimates
 
 Statistics based on the household and establishment surveys are subject
to both sampling and nonsampling error.  When a sample rather than the
entire population is surveyed, there is a chance that the sample estimates
may differ from the "true" population values they represent.  The exact
difference, or sampling error, varies depending on the particular sample
selected, and this variability is measured by the standard error of the
estimate.  There is about a 90-percent chance, or level of confidence, that
an estimate based on a sample will differ by no more than 1.6 standard
errors from the "true" population value because of sampling error.  BLS
analyses are generally conducted at the 90-percent level of confidence.
 
 For example, the confidence interval for the monthly change in total
employment from the household survey is on the order of plus or minus
376,000.  Suppose the estimate of total employment increases by 100,000
from one month to the next.  The 90-percent confidence interval on the
monthly change would range from -276,000 to 476,000 (100,000 +/- 376,000).
These figures do not mean that the sample results are off by these
magnitudes, but rather that there is about a 90-percent chance that the
"true" over-the-month change lies within this interval.  Since this range
includes values of less than zero, we could not say with confidence that
employment had, in fact, increased.  If, however, the reported employment
rise was half a million, then all of the values within the 90-percent
confidence interval would be greater than zero.  In this case, it is likely
(at least a 90-percent chance) that an employment rise had, in fact,
occurred.  The 90-percent confidence interval for the monthly change in
unemployment is +/- 258,000, and for the monthly change in the unemployment
rate it is +/- .21 percentage point.
 
 In general, estimates involving many individuals or establishments have
lower standard errors (relative to the size of the estimate) than estimates
which are based on a small number of observations.  The precision of
estimates is also improved when the data are cumulated over time such as
for quarterly and annual averages.  The seasonal adjustment process can
also improve the stability of the monthly estimates.
 
 The household and establishment surveys are also affected by nonsampling
error.  Nonsampling errors can occur for many reasons, including the
failure to sample a segment of the population, inability to obtain
information for all respondents in the sample, inability or unwillingness
of respondents to provide correct information on a timely basis, mistakes
made by respondents, and errors made in the collection or processing of the
data.
 
 For example, in the establishment survey, estimates for the most recent 2
months are based on substantially incomplete returns; for this reason,
these estimates are labeled preliminary in the tables.  It is only after
two successive revisions to a monthly estimate, when nearly all sample
reports have been received, that the estimate is considered final.
 
 Another major source of nonsampling error in the establishment survey is
the inability to capture, on a timely basis, employment generated by new
firms.  To correct for this systematic underestimation of employment growth
(and other sources of error), a process known as bias adjustment is
included in the survey's estimating procedures, whereby a specified number
of jobs is added to the monthly sample-based change.  The size of the

                                  - 8 -

monthly bias adjustment is based largely on past relationships between the
sample-based estimates of employment and the total counts of employment
described below.
 
 The sample-based estimates from the establishment survey are adjusted
once a year (on a lagged basis) to universe counts of payroll employment
obtained from administrative records of the unemployment insurance program.
The difference between the March sample-based employment estimates and the
March universe counts is known as a benchmark revision, and serves as a
rough proxy for total survey error.  The new benchmarks also incorporate
changes in the classification of industries.  Over the past decade, the
benchmark revision for total nonfarm employment has averaged 0.2 percent,
ranging from zero to 0.6 percent.

Additional statistics and other information
 
 More comprehensive statistics are contained in Employment and Earnings,
published each month by BLS.  It is available for $17.00 per issue or
$35.00 per year from the U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC
20402.  All orders must be prepaid by sending a check or money order
payable to the Superintendent of Documents, or by charging to Mastercard or
Visa.
 
 Employment and Earnings also provides measures of sampling error for the
household survey data published in this release.  For unemployment and
other labor force categories, these measures appear in tables 1-B through
1-H of its "Explanatory Notes."  Measures of the reliability of the data
drawn from the establishment survey and the actual amounts of revision due
to benchmark adjustments are provided in tables 2-B through 2-G of that
publication.
 
 Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request.  Voice phone:  202-606-STAT; TDD phone:
202-606-5897; TDD message referral phone:  1-800-326-2577.
  HOUSEHOLD DATA                                                                                              HOUSEHOLD DATA
  
  Table A-1.  Employment status of the civilian population by sex and age

  (Numbers in thousands)
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |Not seasonally adjusted|             Seasonally adjusted(1)            
                                                    |                       |                                               
           Employment status, sex, and age          |                       |                                               
                                                     _______________________________________________________________________
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |  Oct. | Sept. |  Oct. |  Oct. |  June |  July |  Aug. | Sept. |  Oct. 
                                                    |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                        TOTAL                       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Civilian noninstitutional population..............|203,767|205,699|205,919|203,767|205,085|205,270|205,479|205,699|205,919
    Civilian labor force............................|136,665|137,903|138,255|136,406|137,447|137,296|137,415|138,075|137,976
          Participation rate........................|   67.1|   67.0|   67.1|   66.9|   67.0|   66.9|   66.9|   67.1|   67.0
      Employed......................................|130,671|131,864|132,424|129,910|131,209|131,067|131,168|131,765|131,677
          Employment-population ratio...............|   64.1|   64.1|   64.3|   63.8|   64.0|   63.9|   63.8|   64.1|   63.9
        Agriculture.................................|  3,372|  3,671|  3,630|  3,327|  3,343|  3,441|  3,529|  3,518|  3,603
        Nonagricultural industries..................|127,299|128,193|128,794|126,583|127,867|127,626|127,640|128,247|128,075
      Unemployed....................................|  5,995|  6,039|  5,831|  6,496|  6,237|  6,230|  6,247|  6,310|  6,299
          Unemployment rate.........................|    4.4|    4.4|    4.2|    4.8|    4.5|    4.5|    4.5|    4.6|    4.6
    Not in labor force..............................| 67,102| 67,796| 67,664| 67,361| 67,639| 67,973| 68,064| 67,624| 67,943
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                Men, 16 years and over              |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Civilian noninstitutional population..............| 98,050| 99,006| 99,121| 98,050| 98,691| 98,785| 98,892| 99,006| 99,121
    Civilian labor force............................| 73,345| 73,954| 74,165| 73,311| 73,818| 74,027| 73,695| 74,165| 74,091
          Participation rate........................|   74.8|   74.7|   74.8|   74.8|   74.8|   74.9|   74.5|   74.9|   74.7
      Employed......................................| 70,215| 70,866| 71,219| 69,785| 70,570| 70,605| 70,441| 70,751| 70,797
          Employment-population ratio...............|   71.6|   71.6|   71.9|   71.2|   71.5|   71.5|   71.2|   71.5|   71.4
      Unemployed....................................|  3,130|  3,088|  2,946|  3,526|  3,249|  3,422|  3,253|  3,414|  3,294
          Unemployment rate.........................|    4.3|    4.2|    4.0|    4.8|    4.4|    4.6|    4.4|    4.6|    4.4
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                Men, 20 years and over              |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Civilian noninstitutional population..............| 90,140| 91,003| 91,101| 90,140| 90,700| 90,802| 90,889| 91,003| 91,101
    Civilian labor force............................| 69,361| 69,817| 70,051| 69,193| 69,545| 69,790| 69,490| 69,829| 69,815
          Participation rate........................|   76.9|   76.7|   76.9|   76.8|   76.7|   76.9|   76.5|   76.7|   76.6
      Employed......................................| 66,855| 67,416| 67,773| 66,337| 66,950| 67,040| 66,901| 67,185| 67,241
          Employment-population ratio...............|   74.2|   74.1|   74.4|   73.6|   73.8|   73.8|   73.6|   73.8|   73.8
        Agriculture.................................|  2,363|  2,526|  2,542|  2,298|  2,333|  2,394|  2,443|  2,424|  2,463
        Nonagricultural industries..................| 64,491| 64,890| 65,231| 64,039| 64,617| 64,646| 64,457| 64,761| 64,778
      Unemployed....................................|  2,506|  2,401|  2,278|  2,856|  2,595|  2,750|  2,589|  2,645|  2,575
          Unemployment rate.........................|    3.6|    3.4|    3.3|    4.1|    3.7|    3.9|    3.7|    3.8|    3.7
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
               Women, 16 years and over             |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Civilian noninstitutional population..............|105,718|106,693|106,798|105,718|106,394|106,484|106,587|106,693|106,798
    Civilian labor force............................| 63,321| 63,949| 64,090| 63,095| 63,628| 63,270| 63,721| 63,910| 63,885
          Participation rate........................|   59.9|   59.9|   60.0|   59.7|   59.8|   59.4|   59.8|   59.9|   59.8
      Employed......................................| 60,456| 60,998| 61,205| 60,125| 60,640| 60,462| 60,727| 61,014| 60,881
          Employment-population ratio...............|   57.2|   57.2|   57.3|   56.9|   57.0|   56.8|   57.0|   57.2|   57.0
      Unemployed....................................|  2,865|  2,951|  2,884|  2,970|  2,989|  2,808|  2,994|  2,896|  3,004
          Unemployment rate.........................|    4.5|    4.6|    4.5|    4.7|    4.7|    4.4|    4.7|    4.5|    4.7
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
               Women, 20 years and over             |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Civilian noninstitutional population..............| 98,144| 98,994| 99,037| 98,144| 98,735| 98,778| 98,901| 98,994| 99,037
    Civilian labor force............................| 59,777| 60,059| 60,224| 59,338| 59,599| 59,359| 59,712| 59,804| 59,810
          Participation rate........................|   60.9|   60.7|   60.8|   60.5|   60.4|   60.1|   60.4|   60.4|   60.4
      Employed......................................| 57,397| 57,610| 57,898| 56,919| 57,172| 57,000| 57,286| 57,435| 57,422
          Employment-population ratio...............|   58.5|   58.2|   58.5|   58.0|   57.9|   57.7|   57.9|   58.0|   58.0
        Agriculture.................................|    834|    834|    802|    814|    747|    793|    819|    773|    778
        Nonagricultural industries..................| 56,562| 56,776| 57,097| 56,105| 56,424| 56,207| 56,468| 56,663| 56,643
      Unemployed....................................|  2,380|  2,449|  2,326|  2,419|  2,427|  2,359|  2,426|  2,368|  2,388
          Unemployment rate.........................|    4.0|    4.1|    3.9|    4.1|    4.1|    4.0|    4.1|    4.0|    4.0
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
              Both sexes, 16 to 19 years            |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Civilian  noninstitutional population.............| 15,483| 15,702| 15,781| 15,483| 15,651| 15,690| 15,689| 15,702| 15,781
    Civilian labor force............................|  7,528|  8,027|  7,980|  7,875|  8,302|  8,147|  8,213|  8,442|  8,351
          Participation rate........................|   48.6|   51.1|   50.6|   50.9|   53.0|   51.9|   52.4|   53.8|   52.9
      Employed......................................|  6,419|  6,838|  6,753|  6,654|  7,088|  7,027|  6,981|  7,145|  7,015
          Employment-population ratio...............|   41.5|   43.5|   42.8|   43.0|   45.3|   44.8|   44.5|   45.5|   44.5
        Agriculture.................................|    174|    311|    287|    215|    262|    254|    267|    322|    361
        Nonagricultural industries..................|  6,245|  6,527|  6,466|  6,439|  6,826|  6,773|  6,715|  6,823|  6,653
      Unemployed....................................|  1,108|  1,189|  1,226|  1,221|  1,215|  1,120|  1,232|  1,297|  1,336
          Unemployment rate.........................|   14.7|   14.8|   15.4|   15.5|   14.6|   13.8|   15.0|   15.4|   16.0
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    1 The population figures are not adjusted for seasonal variation; therefore, identical numbers appear in the unadjusted
  and seasonally adjusted columns.
     NOTE: Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used
  in the household survey.






  HOUSEHOLD DATA                                                                                              HOUSEHOLD DATA
  
  Table A-2.  Employment status of the civilian population by race, sex, age, and Hispanic origin

  (Numbers in thousands)
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |Not seasonally adjusted|             Seasonally adjusted(1)            
                                                    |                       |                                               
        Employment status, race, sex, age, and      |                       |                                               
                                                     _______________________________________________________________________
                   Hispanic origin                  |                       |                                               
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |  Oct. | Sept. |  Oct. |  Oct. |  June |  July |  Aug. | Sept. |  Oct. 
                                                    |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                        WHITE                       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Civilian noninstitutional population..............|170,427|171,804|171,956|170,427|171,387|171,513|171,655|171,804|171,956
    Civilian labor force............................|114,963|115,599|115,804|114,784|115,137|114,975|115,275|115,776|115,602
        Participation rate..........................|   67.5|   67.3|   67.3|   67.4|   67.2|   67.0|   67.2|   67.4|   67.2
      Employed......................................|110,653|111,316|111,599|110,063|110,535|110,630|110,708|111,233|111,013
        Employment-population ratio.................|   64.9|   64.8|   64.9|   64.6|   64.5|   64.5|   64.5|   64.7|   64.6
      Unemployed....................................|  4,309|  4,284|  4,206|  4,721|  4,602|  4,346|  4,567|  4,543|  4,589
        Unemployment rate...........................|    3.7|    3.7|    3.6|    4.1|    4.0|    3.8|    4.0|    3.9|    4.0
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                Men, 20 years and over              |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Civilian labor force............................| 59,214| 59,542| 59,620| 59,098| 59,257| 59,403| 59,314| 59,592| 59,469
        Participation rate..........................|   77.4|   77.2|   77.2|   77.2|   77.0|   77.2|   77.0|   77.3|   77.1
      Employed......................................| 57,374| 57,756| 57,911| 56,966| 57,302| 57,436| 57,385| 57,584| 57,509
        Employment-population ratio.................|   75.0|   74.9|   75.0|   74.4|   74.5|   74.6|   74.5|   74.7|   74.5
      Unemployed....................................|  1,840|  1,785|  1,709|  2,132|  1,955|  1,967|  1,929|  2,008|  1,960
        Unemployment rate...........................|    3.1|    3.0|    2.9|    3.6|    3.3|    3.3|    3.3|    3.4|    3.3
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
               Women, 20 years and over             |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Civilian labor force............................| 49,356| 49,348| 49,433| 48,976| 48,886| 48,705| 49,013| 49,110| 49,058
        Participation rate..........................|   60.4|   60.0|   60.1|   60.0|   59.6|   59.3|   59.7|   59.8|   59.7
      Employed......................................| 47,701| 47,682| 47,825| 47,284| 47,197| 47,087| 47,287| 47,492| 47,398
        Employment-population ratio.................|   58.4|   58.0|   58.2|   57.9|   57.5|   57.4|   57.6|   57.8|   57.6
      Unemployed....................................|  1,655|  1,667|  1,608|  1,692|  1,688|  1,618|  1,726|  1,618|  1,660
        Unemployment rate...........................|    3.4|    3.4|    3.3|    3.5|    3.5|    3.3|    3.5|    3.3|    3.4
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
              Both sexes, 16 to 19 years            |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Civilian labor force............................|  6,393|  6,709|  6,751|  6,710|  6,994|  6,867|  6,949|  7,074|  7,075
        Participation rate..........................|   52.3|   53.6|   53.9|   54.9|   56.2|   55.1|   55.6|   56.5|   56.4
      Employed......................................|  5,579|  5,878|  5,863|  5,813|  6,036|  6,107|  6,036|  6,158|  6,106
        Employment-population ratio.................|   45.6|   46.9|   46.8|   47.5|   48.5|   49.0|   48.3|   49.2|   48.7
      Unemployed....................................|    814|    832|    888|    897|    958|    760|    913|    917|    969
        Unemployment rate...........................|   12.7|   12.4|   13.2|   13.4|   13.7|   11.1|   13.1|   13.0|   13.7
          Men.......................................|   14.2|   14.1|   13.8|   14.3|   14.7|   13.1|   14.3|   15.0|   14.0
          Women.....................................|   11.0|   10.5|   12.4|   12.3|   12.6|    8.9|   11.9|   10.7|   13.4
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                        BLACK                       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Civilian noninstitutional population..............| 24,117| 24,458| 24,496| 24,117| 24,349| 24,381| 24,418| 24,458| 24,496
    Civilian labor force............................| 15,624| 15,996| 16,220| 15,555| 16,013| 16,059| 15,907| 15,982| 16,172
        Participation rate..........................|   64.8|   65.4|   66.2|   64.5|   65.8|   65.9|   65.1|   65.3|   66.0
      Employed......................................| 14,208| 14,552| 14,896| 14,067| 14,700| 14,508| 14,476| 14,510| 14,781
        Employment-population ratio.................|   58.9|   59.5|   60.8|   58.3|   60.4|   59.5|   59.3|   59.3|   60.3
      Unemployed....................................|  1,416|  1,444|  1,325|  1,488|  1,313|  1,551|  1,431|  1,472|  1,391
        Unemployment rate...........................|    9.1|    9.0|    8.2|    9.6|    8.2|    9.7|    9.0|    9.2|    8.6
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                Men, 20 years and over              |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Civilian labor force............................|  7,004|  7,024|  7,212|  6,945|  7,088|  7,120|  7,017|  6,975|  7,152
        Participation rate..........................|   72.9|   72.0|   73.7|   72.3|   73.0|   73.2|   72.0|   71.5|   73.1
      Employed......................................|  6,469|  6,534|  6,754|  6,367|  6,599|  6,485|  6,470|  6,475|  6,661
        Employment-population ratio.................|   67.3|   66.9|   69.1|   66.3|   67.9|   66.7|   66.4|   66.3|   68.1
      Unemployed....................................|    535|    490|    458|    578|    489|    635|    547|    499|    492
        Unemployment rate...........................|    7.6|    7.0|    6.4|    8.3|    6.9|    8.9|    7.8|    7.2|    6.9
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
               Women, 20 years and over             |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Civilian labor force............................|  7,742|  7,932|  8,030|  7,680|  7,866|  7,921|  7,894|  7,918|  7,983
        Participation rate..........................|   64.1|   64.8|   65.5|   63.6|   64.5|   64.9|   64.6|   64.7|   65.1
      Employed......................................|  7,105|  7,277|  7,437|  7,044|  7,256|  7,296|  7,296|  7,277|  7,385
        Employment-population ratio.................|   58.8|   59.4|   60.7|   58.3|   59.5|   59.8|   59.7|   59.4|   60.2
      Unemployed....................................|    637|    655|    594|    636|    609|    625|    597|    641|    598
        Unemployment rate...........................|    8.2|    8.3|    7.4|    8.3|    7.7|    7.9|    7.6|    8.1|    7.5
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
              Both sexes, 16 to 19 years            |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Civilian labor force............................|    878|  1,040|    978|    930|  1,060|  1,018|    996|  1,089|  1,037
        Participation rate..........................|   36.1|   42.3|   39.8|   38.2|   43.4|   41.6|   40.6|   44.3|   42.2
      Employed......................................|    634|    742|    705|    656|    846|    727|    709|    758|    735
        Employment-population ratio.................|   26.0|   30.2|   28.7|   26.9|   34.6|   29.7|   28.9|   30.8|   29.9
      Unemployed....................................|    244|    299|    273|    274|    214|    291|    287|    332|    302
        Unemployment rate...........................|   27.8|   28.7|   27.9|   29.5|   20.2|   28.6|   28.8|   30.4|   29.1
          Men.......................................|   25.1|   30.5|   31.2|   30.1|   20.4|   30.6|   29.7|   34.1|   35.1
          Women.....................................|   30.3|   26.9|   25.0|   28.8|   20.1|   26.4|   28.1|   26.8|   23.8
                   HISPANIC ORIGIN                  |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Civilian noninstitutional population..............| 20,519| 21,224| 21,286| 20,519| 21,036| 21,097| 21,159| 21,224| 21,286
    Civilian labor force............................| 14,002| 14,487| 14,509| 13,896| 14,420| 14,240| 14,277| 14,484| 14,418
        Participation rate..........................|   68.2|   68.3|   68.2|   67.7|   68.5|   67.5|   67.5|   68.2|   67.7
      Employed......................................| 12,953| 13,481| 13,502| 12,806| 13,328| 13,219| 13,203| 13,413| 13,381
        Employment-population ratio.................|   63.1|   63.5|   63.4|   62.4|   63.4|   62.7|   62.4|   63.2|   62.9
      Unemployed....................................|  1,049|  1,007|  1,007|  1,090|  1,092|  1,022|  1,074|  1,071|  1,036
        Unemployment rate...........................|    7.5|    6.9|    6.9|    7.8|    7.6|    7.2|    7.5|    7.4|    7.2
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    1 The population figures are not adjusted for seasonal variation; therefore, identical numbers appear in the unadjusted
  and seasonally adjusted columns.
      NOTE: Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races"
  group are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.  Beginning in January
  1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used in the household survey.






  HOUSEHOLD DATA                                                                                                        HOUSEHOLD DATA
  
  Table A-3. Employment status of the civilian population 25 years and over by educational attainment, seasonally adjusted

  (Numbers in thousands)
  ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                            |                             |                                                           
                                            |                             |                                                           
                                            |   Not seasonally adjusted   |                   Seasonally adjusted(1)                  
                                            |                             |                                                           
                                             _________________________________________________________________________________________
            Educational attainment          |                             |                                                           
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
                                            |   Oct.  |  Sept.  |   Oct.  |   Oct.  |   June  |   July  |   Aug.  |  Sept.  |   Oct.  
                                            |   1997  |   1998  |   1998  |   1997  |   1998  |   1998  |   1998  |   1998  |   1998  
  ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
       Less than a high school diploma      |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
  Civilian noninstitutional population......|  29,046 |  29,290 |  28,713 |  29,046 |  30,064 |  29,027 |  29,204 |  29,290 |  28,713 
    Civilian labor force....................|  12,299 |  12,642 |  12,143 |  12,468 |  12,888 |  12,548 |  12,450 |  12,597 |  12,321 
        Percent of population...............|    42.3 |    43.2 |    42.3 |    42.9 |    42.9 |    43.2 |    42.6 |    43.0 |    42.9 
      Employed..............................|  11,408 |  11,845 |  11,368 |  11,502 |  11,963 |  11,648 |  11,567 |  11,728 |  11,483 
        Employment-population ratio.........|    39.3 |    40.4 |    39.6 |    39.6 |    39.8 |    40.1 |    39.6 |    40.0 |    40.0 
      Unemployed............................|     891 |     797 |     774 |     966 |     925 |     901 |     883 |     869 |     838 
        Unemployment rate...................|     7.2 |     6.3 |     6.4 |     7.7 |     7.2 |     7.2 |     7.1 |     6.9 |     6.8 
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
    High school graduates, no college (2)   |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
  Civilian noninstitutional population......|  57,459 |  57,589 |  57,666 |  57,459 |  57,446 |  57,374 |  57,729 |  57,589 |  57,666 
    Civilian labor force....................|  37,805 |  37,468 |  37,669 |  37,759 |  37,096 |  37,219 |  37,381 |  37,218 |  37,606 
        Percent of population...............|    65.8 |    65.1 |    65.3 |    65.7 |    64.6 |    64.9 |    64.8 |    64.6 |    65.2 
      Employed..............................|  36,359 |  36,050 |  36,287 |  36,179 |  35,602 |  35,694 |  35,898 |  35,693 |  36,106 
        Employment-population ratio.........|    63.3 |    62.6 |    62.9 |    63.0 |    62.0 |    62.2 |    62.2 |    62.0 |    62.6 
      Unemployed............................|   1,447 |   1,418 |   1,383 |   1,580 |   1,494 |   1,525 |   1,483 |   1,525 |   1,500 
        Unemployment rate...................|     3.8 |     3.8 |     3.7 |     4.2 |     4.0 |     4.1 |     4.0 |     4.1 |     4.0 
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
       Less than a bachelor's degree(3)     |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
  Civilian noninstitutional population......|  42,613 |  41,769 |  42,573 |  42,613 |  41,880 |  42,293 |  41,842 |  41,769 |  42,573 
    Civilian labor force....................|  31,917 |  31,184 |  31,827 |  31,328 |  31,227 |  31,174 |  30,863 |  31,152 |  31,221 
        Percent of population...............|    74.9 |    74.7 |    74.8 |    73.5 |    74.6 |    73.7 |    73.8 |    74.6 |    73.3 
      Employed..............................|  31,020 |  30,276 |  30,916 |  30,410 |  30,333 |  30,224 |  29,987 |  30,216 |  30,280 
        Employment-population ratio.........|    72.8 |    72.5 |    72.6 |    71.4 |    72.4 |    71.5 |    71.7 |    72.3 |    71.1 
      Unemployed............................|     897 |     907 |     911 |     918 |     894 |     950 |     876 |     937 |     940 
        Unemployment rate...................|     2.8 |     2.9 |     2.9 |     2.9 |     2.9 |     3.0 |     2.8 |     3.0 |     3.0 
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
              College graduates             |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
                                            |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         |         
  Civilian noninstitutional population......|  41,696 |  43,669 |  43,520 |  41,696 |  42,464 |  43,309 |  43,431 |  43,669 |  43,520 
    Civilian labor force....................|  33,716 |  35,059 |  35,034 |  33,510 |  34,274 |  34,721 |  34,847 |  35,015 |  34,813 
        Percent of population...............|    80.9 |    80.3 |    80.5 |    80.4 |    80.7 |    80.2 |    80.2 |    80.2 |    80.0 
      Employed..............................|  33,120 |  34,453 |  34,405 |  32,868 |  33,674 |  34,146 |  34,236 |  34,453 |  34,132 
        Employment-population ratio.........|    79.4 |    78.9 |    79.1 |    78.8 |    79.3 |    78.8 |    78.8 |    78.9 |    78.4 
      Unemployed............................|     596 |     606 |     629 |     642 |     600 |     575 |     611 |     562 |     681 
        Unemployment rate...................|     1.8 |     1.7 |     1.8 |     1.9 |     1.7 |     1.7 |     1.8 |     1.6 |     2.0 
  ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    1 The population figures are not adjusted for seasonal variation, therefore, identical numbers appear in the unadjusted and
  seasonally adjusted columns.
    2 Includes high school diploma or equivalent.
    3 Includes the categories, some college, no degree; and associate degree.
     NOTE:  Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used in the
  household survey.






  HOUSEHOLD DATA                                                                                              HOUSEHOLD DATA
  
  Table A-4. Selected employment indicators

  (In thousands)
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |Not seasonally adjusted|              Seasonally adjusted              
                                                    |                       |                                               
                       Category                     |                       |                                               
                                                     _______________________________________________________________________
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |  Oct. | Sept. |  Oct. |  Oct. |  June |  July |  Aug. | Sept. |  Oct. 
                                                    |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                    CHARACTERISTIC                  |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Total employed, 16 years and over.................|130,671|131,864|132,424|129,910|131,209|131,067|131,168|131,765|131,677
    Married men, spouse present.....................| 43,159| 43,385| 43,512| 42,771| 42,539| 42,837| 42,833| 43,255| 43,081
    Married women, spouse present...................| 33,318| 33,067| 33,451| 32,978| 32,805| 32,658| 32,597| 32,870| 33,087
    Women who maintain families.....................|  7,866|  8,042|  7,928|  7,865|  7,922|  7,846|  7,932|  8,002|  7,928
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                      OCCUPATION                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Managerial and professional specialty...........| 38,080| 39,572| 39,960| 37,844| 38,732| 39,011| 38,916| 39,607| 39,732
    Technical, sales, and administrative support....| 38,630| 38,485| 38,556| 38,537| 38,567| 38,500| 38,889| 38,485| 38,441
    Service occupations.............................| 17,657| 17,835| 17,577| 17,723| 17,873| 17,584| 17,727| 17,961| 17,630
    Precision production, craft, and repair.........| 14,110| 14,060| 14,129| 14,051| 14,509| 14,312| 14,079| 13,963| 14,115
    Operators, fabricators, and laborers............| 18,696| 18,073| 18,446| 18,385| 18,120| 18,145| 17,866| 18,047| 18,154
    Farming, forestry, and fishing..................|  3,499|  3,838|  3,756|  3,438|  3,503|  3,503|  3,618|  3,621|  3,683
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                   CLASS OF WORKER                  |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Agriculture:                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
      Wage and salary workers.......................|  1,805|  2,260|  2,284|  1,815|  1,841|  2,018|  2,165|  2,213|  2,309
      Self-employed workers.........................|  1,506|  1,368|  1,310|  1,475|  1,470|  1,383|  1,345|  1,280|  1,265
      Unpaid family workers.........................|     61|     43|     37|     55|     48|     30|     28|     43|     32
    Nonagricultural industries:                     |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
      Wage and salary workers.......................|118,260|118,974|119,616|117,635|118,654|118,543|118,676|118,978|118,990
        Government..................................| 18,137| 18,268| 18,586| 18,075| 18,497| 18,364| 18,257| 18,415| 18,549
        Private industries..........................|100,123|100,706|101,030| 99,560|100,157|100,179|100,419|100,563|100,441
          Private households........................|    893|    887|    950|    877|    961|    974|    853|    900|    940
          Other industries..........................| 99,230| 99,818|100,080| 98,683| 99,195| 99,205| 99,566| 99,663| 99,502
      Self-employed workers.........................|  8,948|  9,131|  9,091|  8,930|  8,969|  9,094|  8,947|  9,159|  9,064
      Unpaid family workers.........................|     90|     88|     87|     92|    100|     91|     83|     85|     91
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
              PERSONS AT WORK PART TIME             |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    All industries:                                 |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
      Part time for economic reasons................|  3,602|  3,112|  3,086|  3,913|  3,837|  3,783|  3,463|  3,365|  3,362
        Slack work or business conditions...........|  1,983|  1,721|  1,821|  2,211|  2,230|  2,372|  1,989|  1,897|  2,042
        Could only find part-time work..............|  1,343|  1,113|  1,047|  1,406|  1,246|  1,192|  1,175|  1,152|  1,099
      Part time for noneconomic reasons.............| 19,001| 18,989| 19,479| 18,113| 18,665| 18,584| 18,648| 18,857| 18,641
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Nonagricultural industries:                     |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
      Part time for economic reasons................|  3,439|  2,928|  2,956|  3,732|  3,676|  3,632|  3,307|  3,152|  3,216
        Slack work or business conditions...........|  1,885|  1,619|  1,724|  2,103|  2,151|  2,261|  1,900|  1,779|  1,933
        Could only find part-time work..............|  1,312|  1,072|  1,030|  1,378|  1,199|  1,162|  1,143|  1,113|  1,081
      Part time for noneconomic reasons.............| 18,392| 18,378| 18,896| 17,537| 18,019| 17,972| 18,001| 18,305| 18,082
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

      NOTE: Persons at work excludes employed persons who were absent from their jobs during the entire reference week for
  reasons such as vacation, illness, or industrial dispute.  Part time for noneconomic reasons excludes persons who usually
  work full time but worked only 1 to 34 hours during the reference week for reasons such as holidays, illness, and bad
  weather.  Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used
  in the household survey.






  HOUSEHOLD DATA                                                                                              HOUSEHOLD DATA
  
  Table A-5. Selected unemployment indicators, seasonally adjusted
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |       Number of       |                                               
                                                    |   unemployed persons  |             Unemployment rates(1)             
                                                    |     (in thousands)    |                                               
                                                     _______________________________________________________________________
                       Category                     |                       |                                               
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |  Oct. | Sept. |  Oct. |  Oct. |  June |  July |  Aug. | Sept. |  Oct. 
                                                    |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                    CHARACTERISTIC                  |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
   Total, 16 years and over.........................|  6,496|  6,310|  6,299|   4.8 |   4.5 |   4.5 |   4.5 |   4.6 |   4.6 
     Men, 20 years and over.........................|  2,856|  2,645|  2,575|   4.1 |   3.7 |   3.9 |   3.7 |   3.8 |   3.7 
     Women, 20 years and over.......................|  2,419|  2,368|  2,388|   4.1 |   4.1 |   4.0 |   4.1 |   4.0 |   4.0 
     Both sexes, 16 to 19 years.....................|  1,221|  1,297|  1,336|  15.5 |  14.6 |  13.8 |  15.0 |  15.4 |  16.0 
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
     Married men, spouse present....................|  1,124|  1,004|  1,006|   2.6 |   2.2 |   2.3 |   2.4 |   2.3 |   2.3 
     Married women, spouse present..................|    962|    884|    939|   2.8 |   2.9 |   2.8 |   3.2 |   2.6 |   2.8 
     Women who maintain families....................|    663|    660|    585|   7.8 |   6.9 |   6.8 |   6.8 |   7.6 |   6.9 
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
     Full-time workers..............................|  5,215|  4,963|  4,903|   4.7 |   4.4 |   4.4 |   4.4 |   4.4 |   4.3 
     Part-time workers..............................|  1,288|  1,305|  1,399|   5.3 |   5.2 |   5.3 |   5.4 |   5.3 |   5.7 
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                    OCCUPATION(2)                   |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
     Managerial and professional specialty..........|    711|    710|    801|   1.8 |   1.7 |   1.7 |   1.9 |   1.8 |   2.0 
     Technical, sales, and administrative support...|  1,569|  1,557|  1,567|   3.9 |   3.9 |   3.8 |   3.7 |   3.9 |   3.9 
     Precision production, craft, and repair........|    786|    626|    584|   5.3 |   4.3 |   4.4 |   4.6 |   4.3 |   4.0 
     Operators, fabricators, and laborers...........|  1,407|  1,401|  1,319|   7.1 |   6.9 |   6.9 |   6.7 |   7.2 |   6.8 
     Farming, forestry, and fishing.................|    271|    295|    197|   7.3 |   6.5 |   7.0 |   5.5 |   7.5 |   5.1 
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                       INDUSTRY                     |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
     Nonagricultural private wage and salary workers|  5,009|  5,052|  4,934|   4.8 |   4.7 |   4.6 |   4.7 |   4.8 |   4.7 
       Goods-producing industries...................|  1,420|  1,516|  1,311|   5.0 |   4.7 |   4.9 |   4.8 |   5.3 |   4.6 
         Mining.....................................|     30|     18|     14|   4.5 |   3.9 |   3.7 |   3.9 |   3.0 |   2.2 
         Construction...............................|    599|    625|    458|   8.7 |   8.0 |   6.7 |   7.4 |   9.0 |   6.5 
         Manufacturing..............................|    791|    873|    839|   3.8 |   3.6 |   4.4 |   3.9 |   4.1 |   4.0 
           Durable goods............................|    379|    492|    400|   3.1 |   2.9 |   4.3 |   3.7 |   3.8 |   3.1 
           Nondurable goods.........................|    412|    381|    438|   4.8 |   4.6 |   4.5 |   4.4 |   4.6 |   5.3 
       Service-producing industries.................|  3,589|  3,537|  3,623|   4.7 |   4.7 |   4.5 |   4.7 |   4.6 |   4.7 
         Transportation and public utilities........|    248|    266|    257|   3.3 |   3.6 |   3.4 |   3.7 |   3.6 |   3.5 
         Wholesale and retail trade.................|  1,634|  1,572|  1,524|   6.1 |   5.7 |   5.6 |   5.6 |   5.8 |   5.7 
         Finance, insurance, and real estate........|    223|    186|    212|   2.9 |   2.1 |   2.0 |   2.7 |   2.3 |   2.5 
         Services...................................|  1,484|  1,513|  1,630|   4.3 |   4.7 |   4.5 |   4.7 |   4.4 |   4.8 
     Government workers.............................|    443|    431|    409|   2.4 |   2.0 |   2.5 |   2.2 |   2.3 |   2.2 
     Agricultural wage and salary workers...........|    192|    189|    156|   9.6 |   8.1 |   8.2 |   7.0 |   7.9 |   6.3 
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    1 Unemployment as a percent of the civilian labor force.
    2 Seasonally adjusted unemployment data for service occupations are not available because the seasonal component, which
  is small relative to the trend-cycle and irregular components, cannot be separated with sufficient precision.
     NOTE: Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used
  in the household survey.






  HOUSEHOLD DATA                                                                                              HOUSEHOLD DATA
  
  Table A-6. Duration of unemployment

  (Numbers in thousands)
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |Not seasonally adjusted|              Seasonally adjusted              
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                     _______________________________________________________________________
                       Duration                     |                       |                                               
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |  Oct. | Sept. |  Oct. |  Oct. |  June |  July |  Aug. | Sept. |  Oct. 
                                                    |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                 NUMBER OF UNEMPLOYED               |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
   Less than 5 weeks................................|  2,362|  2,665|  2,617|  2,558|  2,519|  2,625|  2,675|  2,639|  2,857
   5 to 14 weeks....................................|  1,802|  1,793|  1,728|  1,912|  2,084|  1,983|  1,960|  1,999|  1,841
   15 weeks and over................................|  1,830|  1,581|  1,486|  1,990|  1,621|  1,600|  1,647|  1,651|  1,589
      15 to 26 weeks................................|    831|    686|    652|    919|    852|    793|    820|    733|    699
      27 weeks and over.............................|    999|    896|    834|  1,071|    769|    807|    827|    918|    890
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
   Average (mean) duration, in weeks................|   16.6|   14.5|   14.6|   16.3|   13.8|   14.3|   13.5|   14.3|   14.3
   Median duration, in weeks........................|    7.5|    6.8|    5.7|    7.7|    6.6|    6.6|    6.9|    6.6|    5.8
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                 PERCENT DISTRIBUTION               |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
   Total unemployed.................................|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0
     Less than 5 weeks..............................|   39.4|   44.1|   44.9|   39.6|   40.5|   42.3|   42.6|   42.0|   45.4
     5 to 14 weeks..................................|   30.1|   29.7|   29.6|   29.6|   33.5|   31.9|   31.2|   31.8|   29.3
     15 weeks and over..............................|   30.5|   26.2|   25.5|   30.8|   26.0|   25.8|   26.2|   26.2|   25.3
       15 to 26 weeks...............................|   13.9|   11.4|   11.2|   14.2|   13.7|   12.8|   13.0|   11.7|   11.1
       27 weeks and over............................|   16.7|   14.8|   14.3|   16.6|   12.4|   13.0|   13.2|   14.6|   14.2
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

     NOTE: Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used
  in the household survey.






  HOUSEHOLD DATA                                                                                              HOUSEHOLD DATA
  
  Table A-7. Reason for unemployment

  (Numbers in thousands)
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |Not seasonally adjusted|              Seasonally adjusted              
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                     _______________________________________________________________________
                        Reason                      |                       |                                               
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |  Oct. | Sept. |  Oct. |  Oct. |  June |  July |  Aug. | Sept. |  Oct. 
                                                    |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                 NUMBER OF UNEMPLOYED               |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Job losers and persons who completed temporary    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
     jobs...........................................|  2,525|  2,534|  2,426|  2,934|  2,819|  2,908|  2,852|  2,902|  2,815
    On temporary layoff.............................|    668|    628|    584|    963|    841|    966|    978|    939|    831
    Not on temporary layoff.........................|  1,857|  1,905|  1,842|  1,971|  1,978|  1,941|  1,874|  1,963|  1,984
      Permanent job losers..........................|  1,252|  1,237|  1,218|  (1)  |  (1)  |  (1)  |  (1)  |  (1)  |  (1)  
      Persons who completed temporary jobs..........|    606|    668|    625|  (1)  |  (1)  |  (1)  |  (1)  |  (1)  |  (1)  
  Job leavers.......................................|    769|    854|    757|    732|    766|    799|    740|    724|    734
  Reentrants........................................|  2,225|  2,223|  2,137|  2,247|  2,096|  2,042|  2,132|  2,195|  2,170
  New entrants......................................|    475|    428|    509|    555|    532|    463|    503|    487|    589
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                 PERCENT DISTRIBUTION               |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Total unemployed..................................|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0|  100.0
   Job losers and persons who completed temporary   |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
     jobs...........................................|   42.1|   42.0|   41.6|   45.4|   45.4|   46.8|   45.8|   46.0|   44.6
     On temporary layoff............................|   11.1|   10.4|   10.0|   14.9|   13.5|   15.6|   15.7|   14.9|   13.2
     Not on temporary layoff........................|   31.0|   31.5|   31.6|   30.5|   31.8|   31.3|   30.1|   31.1|   31.5
   Job leavers......................................|   12.8|   14.1|   13.0|   11.3|   12.3|   12.9|   11.9|   11.5|   11.6
   Reentrants.......................................|   37.1|   36.8|   36.7|   34.7|   33.7|   32.9|   34.2|   34.8|   34.4
   New entrants.....................................|    7.9|    7.1|    8.7|    8.6|    8.6|    7.5|    8.1|    7.7|    9.3
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
            UNEMPLOYED AS A PERCENT OF THE          |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                   CIVILIAN LABOR FORCE             |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
   Job losers and persons who completed temporary   |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
     jobs...........................................|    1.8|    1.8|    1.8|    2.2|    2.1|    2.1|    2.1|    2.1|    2.0
   Job leavers......................................|     .6|     .6|     .5|     .5|     .6|     .6|     .5|     .5|     .5
   Reentrants.......................................|    1.6|    1.6|    1.5|    1.6|    1.5|    1.5|    1.6|    1.6|    1.6
   New entrants.....................................|     .3|     .3|     .4|     .4|     .4|     .3|     .4|     .4|     .4
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    1 Not available.
     NOTE: Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used
  in the household survey.






  HOUSEHOLD DATA                                                                                               HOUSEHOLD DATA
  
  Table A-8. Range of alternative measures of labor underutilization

  (Percent)
  ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                              |                    |                                         
                                                              |                    |                                         
                                                              |   Not seasonally   |           Seasonally adjusted           
                                                              |      adjusted      |                                         
                            Measure                           |                    |                                         
                                                               ______________________________________________________________
                                                              |                    |                                         
                                                              |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
                                                              | Oct. | Sept.| Oct. | Oct. | June | July | Aug. | Sept.| Oct. 
                                                              | 1997 | 1998 | 1998 | 1997 | 1998 | 1998 | 1998 | 1998 | 1998 
  ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                              |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
                                                              |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
  U-1 Persons unemployed 15 weeks or longer, as a percent of  |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     the civilian                                             |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     labor force..............................................|   1.3|   1.1|   1.1|   1.5|   1.2|   1.2|   1.2|   1.2|   1.2
                                                              |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
  U-2 Job losers and persons who completed temporary jobs, as |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     a percent of the                                         |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     civilian labor force.....................................|   1.8|   1.8|   1.8|   2.2|   2.1|   2.1|   2.1|   2.1|   2.0
                                                              |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
  U-3 Total unemployed, as a percent of the civilian labor    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     force                                                    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     (official unemployment rate).............................|   4.4|   4.4|   4.2|   4.8|   4.5|   4.5|   4.5|   4.6|   4.6
                                                              |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
  U-4 Total unemployed plus discouraged workers, as a percent |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     of the civilian                                          |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
      labor force plus discouraged workers....................|   4.6|   4.6|   4.4|  (1) |  (1) |  (1) |  (1) |  (1) |  (1) 
                                                              |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
  U-5 Total unemployed, plus discouraged workers, plus all    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     other marginally                                         |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
      attached workers, as a percent of the civilian labor    |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     force plus all marginally                                |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
      attached workers........................................|   5.3|   5.3|   5.1|  (1) |  (1) |  (1) |  (1) |  (1) |  (1) 
                                                              |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
  U-6 Total unemployed, plus all marginally attached workers, |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     plus total employed                                      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
      part time for economic reasons, as a percent of the     |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
     civilian labor force plus                                |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      |      
      all marginally attached workers.........................|   7.9|   7.6|   7.3|  (1) |  (1) |  (1) |  (1) |  (1) |  (1) 
  ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    1 Not available.
      NOTE: This range of alternative measures of labor underutilization replaces the U1-U7 range published in table A-7 of
  this release prior to 1994.  Marginally attached workers are persons who currently are neither working nor looking for work
  but indicate that they want and are available for a job and have looked for work sometime in the recent past.  Discouraged
  workers, a subset of the marginally attached, have given a job-market related reason for not currently looking for a job. 
  Persons employed part time for economic reasons are those who want and are available for full-time work but have had to
  settle for a part-time schedule.  For further information, see "BLS introduces new range of alternative unemployment
  measures,"  in the October 1995 issue of the Monthly Labor Review.  Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite
  estimation procedures and revised population controls used in the household survey.






  HOUSEHOLD DATA                                                                                              HOUSEHOLD DATA
  
  Table A-9. Unemployed persons by sex and age, seasonally adjusted
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |       Number of       |                                               
                                                    |   unemployed persons  |             Unemployment rates(1)             
                                                    |     (in thousands)    |                                               
                     Age and sex                    |                       |                                               
                                                     _______________________________________________________________________
                                                    |                       |                                               
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |  Oct. | Sept. |  Oct. |  Oct. |  June |  July |  Aug. | Sept. |  Oct. 
                                                    |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1997 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 |  1998 
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
  Total, 16 years and over..........................|  6,496|  6,310|  6,299|   4.8 |   4.5 |   4.5 |   4.5 |   4.6 |   4.6 
    16 to 24 years..................................|  2,375|  2,438|  2,324|  11.1 |  10.6 |  10.3 |  11.1 |  11.0 |  10.5 
      16 to 19 years................................|  1,221|  1,297|  1,336|  15.5 |  14.6 |  13.8 |  15.0 |  15.4 |  16.0 
        16 to 17 years..............................|    568|    611|    623|  17.5 |  18.2 |  15.2 |  17.1 |  17.9 |  18.8 
        18 to 19 years..............................|    654|    696|    710|  14.1 |  12.3 |  12.9 |  13.8 |  13.8 |  14.2 
      20 to 24 years................................|  1,154|  1,141|    988|   8.5 |   8.1 |   8.2 |   8.7 |   8.3 |   7.2 
    25 years and over...............................|  4,122|  3,888|  3,970|   3.6 |   3.4 |   3.4 |   3.3 |   3.4 |   3.4 
      25 to 54 years................................|  3,636|  3,421|  3,520|   3.7 |   3.5 |   3.5 |   3.4 |   3.5 |   3.6 
      55 years and over.............................|    472|    471|    456|   2.8 |   2.5 |   2.8 |   2.6 |   2.7 |   2.6 
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Men, 16 years and over..........................|  3,526|  3,414|  3,294|   4.8 |   4.4 |   4.6 |   4.4 |   4.6 |   4.4 
      16 to 24 years................................|  1,350|  1,403|  1,259|  12.0 |  10.8 |  11.4 |  11.4 |  12.1 |  11.0 
        16 to 19 years..............................|    670|    769|    720|  16.3 |  15.3 |  15.9 |  15.8 |  17.7 |  16.8 
          16 to 17 years............................|    311|    365|    369|  18.2 |  21.0 |  17.3 |  18.6 |  20.7 |  21.8 
          18 to 19 years............................|    360|    401|    347|  14.8 |  11.8 |  14.6 |  14.2 |  15.7 |  13.5 
        20 to 24 years..............................|    680|    634|    539|   9.5 |   8.2 |   8.7 |   8.9 |   8.7 |   7.5 
      25 years and over.............................|  2,176|  2,002|  2,036|   3.5 |   3.2 |   3.4 |   3.2 |   3.2 |   3.2 
        25 to 54 years..............................|  1,887|  1,715|  1,764|   3.6 |   3.3 |   3.4 |   3.3 |   3.2 |   3.3 
        55 years and over...........................|    277|    296|    271|   3.0 |   2.5 |   2.9 |   2.5 |   3.1 |   2.8 
                                                    |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       |       
    Women, 16 years and over........................|  2,970|  2,896|  3,004|   4.7 |   4.7 |   4.4 |   4.7 |   4.5 |   4.7 
      16 to 24 years................................|  1,025|  1,036|  1,066|  10.1 |  10.3 |   9.1 |  10.7 |   9.8 |  10.1 
        16 to 19 years..............................|    551|    528|    617|  14.7 |  13.9 |  11.5 |  14.2 |  12.9 |  15.1 
          16 to 17 years............................|    257|    246|    254|  16.7 |  15.1 |  12.9 |  15.5 |  14.8 |  15.6 
          18 to 19 years............................|    294|    295|    363|  13.4 |  12.7 |  11.2 |  13.3 |  11.9 |  14.8 
        20 to 24 years..............................|    474|    508|    449|   7.4 |   8.0 |   7.7 |   8.6 |   7.9 |   6.9 
      25 years and over.............................|  1,946|  1,886|  1,934|   3.7 |   3.6 |   3.5 |   3.5 |   3.5 |   3.6 
        25 to 54 years..............................|  1,749|  1,706|  1,756|   3.8 |   3.8 |   3.6 |   3.6 |   3.7 |   3.8 
        55 years and over...........................|    195|    175|    185|   2.7 |   2.6 |   2.6 |   2.8 |   2.3 |   2.4 
  __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    1 Unemployment as a percent of the civilian labor force.
     NOTE: Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used
  in the household survey.






  HOUSEHOLD DATA                                                                                                        HOUSEHOLD DATA
  
  Table A-10. Persons not in the labor force and multiple jobholders by sex, not seasonally adjusted

  (Numbers in thousands)
  ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                                    |                     |                     |                     
                                                                    |                     |                     |                     
                                                                    |        Total        |         Men         |        Women        
                                                                    |                     |                     |                     
                                                                     _________________________________________________________________
                               Category                             |                     |                     |                     
                                                                    |          |          |          |          |          |          
                                                                    |   Oct.   |   Oct.   |   Oct.   |   Oct.   |   Oct.   |   Oct.   
                                                                    |   1997   |   1998   |   1997   |   1998   |   1997   |   1998   
  ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
                                                                    |          |          |          |          |          |          
                                                                    |          |          |          |          |          |          
                        NOT IN THE LABOR FORCE                      |          |          |          |          |          |          
                                                                    |          |          |          |          |          |          
                                                                    |          |          |          |          |          |          
  Total not in the labor force......................................|  67,102  |  67,664  |  24,705  |  24,955  |  42,397  |  42,708  
    Persons who currently want a job................................|   4,485  |   4,550  |   1,738  |   1,861  |   2,747  |   2,689  
       Searched for work and vailable to work now(1)................|   1,284  |   1,242  |     561  |     592  |     723  |     650  
          Reason not currently looking:                             |          |          |          |          |          |          
            Discouragement over job prospects(2)....................|     302  |     333  |     181  |     197  |     121  |     135  
               Reasons other than discouragement(3).................|     982  |     910  |     380  |     395  |     602  |     515  
                                                                    |          |          |          |          |          |          
                         MULTIPLE JOBHOLDERS                        |          |          |          |          |          |          
                                                                    |          |          |          |          |          |          
  Total multiple jobholders(4)......................................|   8,139  |   8,234  |   4,357  |   4,270  |   3,781  |   3,964  
      Percent of total employed.....................................|     6.2  |     6.2  |     6.2  |     6.0  |     6.3  |     6.5  
                                                                    |          |          |          |          |          |          
      Primary job full time, secondary job part time................|   4,584  |   4,755  |   2,649  |   2,739  |   1,935  |   2,016  
      Primary and secondary jobs both part time.....................|   1,721  |   1,675  |     514  |     483  |   1,207  |   1,192  
      Primary and secondary jobs both full time.....................|     260  |     278  |     208  |     208  |      51  |      70  
      Hours vary on primary or secondary job........................|   1,558  |   1,487  |     972  |     817  |     586  |     670  
  ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

    1 Data refer to persons who have searched for work during the prior 12 months and were available to take a job during the
  reference week.
    2 Includes thinks no work available, could not find work, lacks schooling or training, employer thinks too young or old, and other
  types of discrimination.
    3 Includes those who did not actively look for work in the prior 4 weeks for such reasons as child-care and transportation
  problems, as well as a small number for which reason for nonparticipation was not determined.
    4 Includes persons who work part time on their primary job and full time on their secondary job(s), not shown separately.
     NOTE: Beginning in January 1998, data reflect new composite estimation procedures and revised population controls used in the
  household survey.

     ESTABLISHMENT DATA                                                                                    ESTABLISHMENT DATA
     
     
     Table B-1. Employees on nonfarm payrolls by industry

     (In thousands)
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
                                                  Not seasonally adjusted                   Seasonally adjusted              
                                                                                                                             
                     Industry                                                                                                
                                                Oct.    Aug.   Sept.    Oct.    Oct.    June    July    Aug.   Sept.    Oct. 
                                                1997    1998   1998p   1998p    1997    1998    1998    1998   1998p   1998p 
                                                                                                                             
               Total......................... 124,568 126,006 126,774 127,487 123,568 125,751 125,869 126,191 126,348 126,464
                                                                                                                             
            Total private.................... 104,627 107,282 107,043 107,222 103,922 105,938 106,043 106,269 106,406 106,498
                                                                                                                             
     Goods-producing.........................  25,367  25,720  25,613  25,528  25,032  25,304  25,135  25,253  25,221  25,183
                                                                                                                             
       Mining................................     599     582     575     572     592     578     571     571     570     565
         Metal mining........................    53.0    51.1    50.2    49.9      53      51      50      50      50      50
         Coal mining.........................    95.0    90.3    89.0    88.5      95      90      89      90      89      88
         Oil and gas extraction..............   340.7   328.3   324.3   322.0     337     330     325     323     323     319
         Nonmetallic minerals, except fuels..   110.2   112.1   111.6   111.1     107     107     107     108     108     108
                                                                                                                             
       Construction..........................   5,984   6,342   6,258   6,262   5,722   5,946   5,970   5,989   5,968   5,987
         General building contractors........ 1,361.1 1,478.8 1,449.1 1,452.2   1,326   1,401   1,410   1,413   1,407   1,414
         Heavy construction, except building.   871.1   905.3   900.6   902.4     789     821     828     829     818     817
         Special trade contractors........... 3,751.4 3,958.2 3,908.6 3,907.8   3,607   3,724   3,732   3,747   3,743   3,756
                                                                                                                             
       Manufacturing.........................  18,784  18,796  18,780  18,694  18,718  18,780  18,594  18,693  18,683  18,631
           Production workers................  13,008  12,924  12,949  12,877  12,945  12,943  12,746  12,836  12,852  12,815
                                                                                                                             
        Durable goods........................  11,077  11,115  11,105  11,069  11,060  11,144  10,989  11,106  11,085  11,053
           Production workers................   7,613   7,577   7,594   7,578   7,598   7,626   7,468   7,577   7,576   7,564
         Lumber and wood products............   803.5   817.4   815.6   815.2     794     801     802     802     804     806
         Furniture and fixtures..............   513.1   524.1   524.1   524.9     511     524     528     526     524     523
         Stone, clay, and glass products.....   562.4   575.3   574.2   572.3     554     562     561     564     564     564
         Primary metal industries............   713.6   711.1   711.7   706.1     714     717     706     714     713     706
           Blast furnaces and basic steel                                                                                    
              products.......................   235.4   232.7   232.0   230.3   (1)     (1)     (1)     (1)     (1)     (1)  
         Fabricated metal products........... 1,486.7 1,488.2 1,489.0 1,484.9   1,485   1,490   1,477   1,490   1,487   1,483
         Industrial machinery and equipment.. 2,175.4 2,180.1 2,174.7 2,168.4   2,185   2,202   2,193   2,190   2,183   2,178
           Computer and office equipment.....   380.6   374.3   370.2   371.3     380     375     375     373     371     370
         Electronic and other electrical                                                                                     
            equipment........................ 1,703.6 1,692.5 1,688.1 1,676.6   1,702   1,714   1,701   1,694   1,687   1,675
           Electronic components and                                                                                         
              accessories....................   668.8   662.3   656.8   652.5     669     672     667     661     658     653
         Transportation equipment............ 1,858.1 1,881.1 1,884.1 1,885.0   1,861   1,882   1,772   1,884   1,881   1,888
           Motor vehicles and equipment......   989.6   994.5   998.2 1,000.1     990     993     878     995     994   1,001
           Aircraft and parts................   513.3   522.8   523.7   522.6     513     524     526     526     524     522
         Instruments and related products....   866.4   858.7   854.5   850.2     866     864     861     857     855     850
         Miscellaneous manufacturing.........   394.0   386.6   389.3   385.5     388     388     388     385     387     380
                                                                                                                             
        Nondurable goods.....................   7,707   7,681   7,675   7,625   7,658   7,636   7,605   7,587   7,598   7,578
           Production workers................   5,395   5,347   5,355   5,299   5,347   5,317   5,278   5,259   5,276   5,251
         Food and kindred products........... 1,723.9 1,763.9 1,768.8 1,736.4   1,689   1,706   1,696   1,690   1,703   1,702
         Tobacco products....................    43.7    40.0    41.1    41.5      41      40      40      40      39      39
         Textile mill products...............   611.3   592.6   596.2   589.4     612     599     594     591     594     590
         Apparel and other textile products..   821.8   767.9   767.1   754.1     814     776     772     762     761     747
         Paper and allied products...........   684.9   682.3   680.5   675.9     685     682     680     680     678     677
         Printing and publishing............. 1,556.1 1,567.1 1,562.4 1,566.0   1,558   1,570   1,571   1,568   1,568   1,568
         Chemicals and allied products....... 1,034.8 1,042.0 1,034.0 1,037.1   1,034   1,037   1,038   1,036   1,034   1,037
         Petroleum and coal products.........   140.7   137.8   136.9   136.2     139     137     135     134     135     134
         Rubber and misc. plastics products.. 1,001.1 1,006.8 1,008.2 1,008.6     998   1,006     998   1,006   1,007   1,005
         Leather and leather products........    89.1    80.4    79.9    79.5      88      83      81      80      79      79
                                                                                                                             
     Service-producing.......................  99,201 100,286 101,161 101,959  98,536 100,447 100,734 100,938 101,127 101,281
                                                                                                                             
       Transportation and public utilities...   6,501   6,556   6,617   6,642   6,453   6,538   6,550   6,570   6,572   6,591
         Transportation......................   4,194   4,204   4,271   4,292   4,149   4,196   4,208   4,235   4,232   4,245
           Railroad transportation...........   228.8   234.2   233.6   233.0     227     232     231     232     232     231
           Local and interurban passenger                                                                                    
              transit........................   468.4   404.7   475.1   483.5     452     458     466     469     463     466
           Trucking and warehousing.......... 1,705.0 1,745.2 1,742.5 1,747.0   1,680   1,709   1,709   1,719   1,714   1,722
           Water transportation..............   182.8   198.8   194.6   192.8     180     183     188     192     191     190
           Transportation by air............. 1,151.0 1,156.6 1,160.4 1,166.7   1,154   1,154   1,154   1,161   1,168   1,170
           Pipelines, except natural gas.....    14.2    14.5    14.3    14.2      14      14      14      14      14      14
           Transportation services...........   444.2   450.1   450.3   454.5     442     446     446     448     450     452
         Communications and public utilities.   2,307   2,352   2,346   2,350   2,304   2,342   2,342   2,335   2,340   2,346
           Communications.................... 1,446.6 1,492.3 1,493.3 1,500.2   1,443   1,488   1,488   1,483   1,488   1,496
           Electric, gas, and sanitary                                                                                       
              services.......................   860.6   859.4   852.4   849.5     861     854     854     852     852     850
                                                                                                                             
       Wholesale trade.......................   6,722   6,870   6,872   6,890   6,697   6,821   6,827   6,838   6,864   6,865
         Durable goods.......................   3,978   4,098   4,089   4,097   3,977   4,067   4,072   4,084   4,096   4,096
         Nondurable goods....................   2,744   2,772   2,783   2,793   2,720   2,754   2,755   2,754   2,768   2,769
       Retail trade..........................  22,169  22,699  22,655  22,661  22,105  22,448  22,547  22,545  22,608  22,598
         Building materials and garden                                                                                       
            supplies.........................   941.0 1,001.3   988.5   986.7     938     975     977     979     984     984
         General merchandise stores.......... 2,783.7 2,748.8 2,776.2 2,829.2   2,738   2,784   2,790   2,784   2,812   2,784
           Department stores................. 2,452.3 2,423.5 2,445.2 2,496.8   2,409   2,457   2,454   2,459   2,477   2,452
         Food stores......................... 3,518.7 3,566.4 3,553.1 3,569.0   3,512   3,538   3,552   3,551   3,557   3,562
         Automotive dealers and service                                                                                      
            stations......................... 2,333.6 2,383.5 2,373.8 2,377.4   2,325   2,351   2,355   2,354   2,358   2,369
           New and used car dealers.......... 1,057.6 1,067.8 1,068.0 1,070.6   1,055   1,064   1,066   1,064   1,065   1,068
         Apparel and accessory stores........ 1,101.1 1,111.6 1,096.1 1,100.5   1,103   1,108   1,111   1,112   1,116   1,103
         Furniture and home furnishings                                                                                      
            stores........................... 1,026.0 1,059.0 1,063.1 1,078.8   1,023   1,058   1,063   1,070   1,073   1,076
         Eating and drinking places.......... 7,609.3 7,954.1 7,914.8 7,776.6   7,630   7,726   7,781   7,770   7,792   7,798
         Miscellaneous retail establishments. 2,855.8 2,874.3 2,889.5 2,942.8   2,836   2,908   2,918   2,925   2,916   2,922
                                                                                                                             
       Finance, insurance, and real estate...   7,140   7,454   7,390   7,398   7,151   7,333   7,370   7,372   7,385   7,410
         Finance.............................   3,439   3,591   3,566   3,578   3,451   3,547   3,565   3,572   3,572   3,590
           Depository institutions........... 2,023.9 2,053.3 2,030.3 2,031.4   2,032   2,042   2,042   2,042   2,033   2,039
             Commercial banks................ 1,456.9 1,466.5 1,449.1 1,449.0   1,462   1,459   1,459   1,457   1,451   1,454
             Savings institutions............   259.0   265.3   262.4   262.4     261     264     265     264     264     265
           Nondepository institutions........   578.0   629.9   627.7   633.1     581     616     624     628     628     636
             Mortgage bankers and brokers....   257.9   296.3   295.9   300.4     260     284     289     294     296     303
           Security and commodity brokers....   610.4   662.5   661.0   664.6     611     648     655     657     662     666
           Holding and other investment                                                                                      
              offices........................   227.0   245.5   247.0   249.0     227     241     244     245     249     249
         Insurance...........................   2,273   2,348   2,342   2,350   2,275   2,328   2,337   2,339   2,346   2,352
           Insurance carriers................ 1,545.7 1,601.6 1,597.4 1,602.3   1,546   1,586   1,594   1,595   1,599   1,603
           Insurance agents, brokers, and                                                                                    
              service........................   727.3   745.9   744.6   747.4     729     742     743     744     747     749
         Real estate.........................   1,428   1,515   1,482   1,470   1,425   1,458   1,468   1,461   1,467   1,468
                                                                                                                             
       Services2.............................  36,728  37,983  37,896  38,103  36,484  37,494  37,614  37,691  37,756  37,851
         Agricultural services...............   723.5   786.5   761.4   756.2     692     706     713     718     720     723
         Hotels and other lodging places..... 1,753.1 1,915.4 1,833.2 1,774.3   1,754   1,773   1,781   1,786   1,786   1,774
         Personal services................... 1,153.0 1,141.4 1,145.2 1,147.5   1,181   1,186   1,184   1,185   1,178   1,175
         Business services................... 8,314.9 8,706.9 8,703.4 8,823.0   8,147   8,556   8,565   8,619   8,592   8,650
           Services to buildings.............   949.3   988.6   985.6   989.6     948     975     980     978     983     988
           Personnel supply services......... 3,179.1 3,258.5 3,253.3 3,316.5   3,030   3,189   3,151   3,178   3,141   3,162
             Help supply services............ 2,846.7 2,917.4 2,914.3 2,968.8   2,694   2,853   2,815   2,850   2,806   2,811
           Computer and data processing                                                                                      
              services....................... 1,460.5 1,631.4 1,636.7 1,651.9   1,462   1,601   1,622   1,632   1,641   1,654
         Auto repair, services, and parking.. 1,136.0 1,173.5 1,170.8 1,171.5   1,134   1,159   1,162   1,167   1,169   1,169
         Miscellaneous repair services.......   380.3   390.3   390.0   390.8     378     387     385     386     388     389
         Motion pictures.....................   546.4   577.1   558.4   556.9     556     554     564     566     566     567
         Amusement and recreation services... 1,545.1 1,980.8 1,815.4 1,658.4   1,597   1,670   1,694   1,705   1,732   1,715
         Health services..................... 9,790.8 9,937.0 9,925.2 9,949.9   9,789   9,905   9,902   9,919   9,936   9,948
           Offices and clinics of medical                                                                                    
              doctors........................ 1,763.2 1,833.7 1,834.7 1,841.2   1,764   1,813   1,817   1,828   1,837   1,842
           Nursing and personal care                                                                                         
              facilities..................... 1,759.6 1,761.1 1,757.0 1,758.1   1,759   1,761   1,756   1,754   1,757   1,757
           Hospitals......................... 3,890.3 3,971.4 3,965.9 3,976.0   3,894   3,953   3,960   3,966   3,973   3,979
           Home health care services.........   720.9   668.1   666.6   664.6     715     683     673     670     665     659
         Legal services......................   950.5   992.6   982.4   989.9     956     980     984     985     990     995
         Educational services................ 2,288.1 1,892.6 2,163.3 2,373.7   2,146   2,200   2,205   2,198   2,208   2,227
         Social services..................... 2,555.2 2,605.2 2,641.8 2,669.8   2,546   2,627   2,657   2,632   2,654   2,661
           Child day care services...........   586.6   535.9   588.4   601.1     572     581     583     586     584     586
           Residential care..................   725.4   758.4   756.0   759.9     728     747     749     752     759     763
         Museums and botanical and zoological                                                                                
           gardens...........................    92.0    98.7    94.2    94.4      91      91      91      92      93      93
         Membership organizations............ 2,239.5 2,312.7 2,253.9 2,268.4   2,252   2,270   2,272   2,273   2,274   2,281
         Engineering and management services. 3,065.4 3,275.7 3,261.0 3,281.1   3,070   3,234   3,259   3,264   3,273   3,286
           Engineering and architectural                                                                                     
              services.......................   884.5   939.8   928.7   928.8     881     921     925     927     925     926
           Management and public relations...   972.9 1,061.0 1,064.2 1,073.3     970   1,037   1,052   1,055   1,063   1,071
         Services, nec.......................    50.7    52.7    52.8    54.0   (1)     (1)     (1)     (1)     (1)     (1)  
                                                                                                                             
       Government............................  19,941  18,724  19,731  20,265  19,646  19,813  19,826  19,922  19,942  19,966
         Federal.............................   2,667   2,695   2,687   2,687   2,690   2,674   2,672   2,683   2,692   2,710
           Federal, except Postal Service.... 1,818.2 1,834.1 1,819.8 1,815.3   1,829   1,813   1,810   1,816   1,817   1,826
         State...............................   4,722   4,411   4,630   4,779   4,609   4,632   4,645   4,661   4,677   4,666
           Education......................... 2,047.0 1,660.7 1,899.4 2,065.3   1,922   1,933   1,938   1,949   1,953   1,939
           Other State government............ 2,674.5 2,750.5 2,730.2 2,713.8   2,687   2,699   2,707   2,712   2,724   2,727
         Local...............................  12,552  11,618  12,414  12,799  12,347  12,507  12,509  12,578  12,573  12,590
           Education......................... 7,221.5 5,938.4 6,951.6 7,387.3   6,947   7,045   7,078   7,128   7,101   7,109
           Other local government............ 5,330.3 5,679.1 5,462.5 5,411.2   5,400   5,462   5,431   5,450   5,472   5,481

       1 These series are not published seasonally adjusted because the seasonal component, which is small relative to the
     trend-cycle and irregular components, cannot be separated with sufficient precision.
       2 Includes other industries, not shown separately.
       p = preliminary.




     ESTABLISHMENT DATA                                                                                    ESTABLISHMENT DATA
     
     
     Table B-2. Average weekly hours of production or nonsupervisory workers1 on private nonfarm payrolls by industry
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
                                                  Not seasonally adjusted                   Seasonally adjusted              
                                                                                                                             
                     Industry                                                                                                
                                                Oct.    Aug.   Sept.    Oct.    Oct.    June    July    Aug.   Sept.    Oct. 
                                                1997    1998   1998p   1998p    1997    1998    1998    1998   1998p   1998p 
                                                                                                                             
            Total private....................   34.7    35.1    34.3    34.6    34.6    34.6    34.6    34.6    34.4    34.6 
                                                                                                                             
     Goods-producing.........................   41.6    41.3    40.4    41.4    41.3    41.0    41.1    41.1    40.7    41.1 
                                                                                                                             
       Mining................................   45.3    44.0    42.9    44.0    45.2    43.8    44.8    43.8    42.8    43.9 
                                                                                                                             
       Construction..........................   39.8    40.1    37.5    39.9    38.9    38.4    39.2    39.1    38.1    39.0 
                                                                                                                             
       Manufacturing.........................   42.2    41.7    41.5    41.9    42.0    41.8    41.7    41.7    41.6    41.8 
           Overtime hours....................    5.0     4.7     4.7     4.7     4.8     4.6     4.6     4.6     4.5     4.5 
                                                                                                                             
        Durable goods........................   43.0    42.2    41.8    42.5    42.8    42.3    42.2    42.3    42.2    42.3 
           Overtime hours....................    5.3     4.8     4.6     4.8     5.1     4.8     4.8     4.8     4.7     4.6 
                                                                                                                             
         Lumber and wood products............   41.5    41.6    40.5    41.5    41.0    41.3    41.2    41.2    40.8    41.1 
         Furniture and fixtures..............   40.7    41.0    40.0    41.4    40.4    41.0    40.7    40.7    40.2    41.0 
         Stone, clay, and glass products.....   43.9    44.1    43.9    44.0    43.2    43.2    43.5    43.6    43.0    43.4 
         Primary metal industries............   45.1    43.8    44.2    43.8    45.2    44.4    43.6    44.1    44.2    43.8 
           Blast furnaces and basic steel                                                                                    
              products.......................   45.0    44.2    44.1    42.7    45.4    45.1    43.8    44.5    44.0    43.0 
         Fabricated metal products...........   42.8    42.2    41.6    42.7    42.6    42.5    42.4    42.3    42.2    42.5 
         Industrial machinery and equipment..   43.4    42.6    41.8    42.1    43.6    43.2    43.0    43.1    42.6    42.3 
         Electronic and other electrical                                                                                     
            equipment........................   41.9    41.5    40.9    41.6    41.9    41.4    41.3    41.7    41.2    41.6 
         Transportation equipment............   44.5    42.7    43.1    44.1    44.3    42.7    42.6    42.6    43.9    43.8 
           Motor vehicles and equipment......   45.0    42.5    43.7    44.4    44.6    42.4    41.7    42.3    44.7    44.0 
         Instruments and related products....   41.9    41.1    40.7    41.2    42.0    41.3    41.3    41.4    41.0    41.2 
         Miscellaneous manufacturing.........   40.8    39.9    39.3    40.3    40.4    40.0    40.0    40.1    39.9    39.9 
                                                                                                                             
        Nondurable goods.....................   41.1    41.0    41.0    41.2    40.9    40.9    41.0    40.9    40.7    41.0 
           Overtime hours....................    4.6     4.5     4.7     4.6     4.4     4.4     4.4     4.3     4.3     4.4 
                                                                                                                             
         Food and kindred products...........   41.8    41.9    42.5    42.3    41.3    41.7    42.0    41.5    41.6    41.8 
         Tobacco products....................   39.6    39.3    37.4    39.2    39.1    39.0    40.6    39.6    37.0    38.7 
         Textile mill products...............   41.4    41.2    40.4    41.0    41.5    41.1    41.0    41.0    39.9    41.1 
         Apparel and other textile products..   37.6    37.6    36.7    37.7    37.3    37.4    37.4    37.5    37.1    37.4 
         Paper and allied products...........   43.8    43.1    44.2    43.8    43.7    43.6    43.5    43.3    43.8    43.8 
         Printing and publishing.............   38.9    38.5    38.6    38.5    38.6    38.2    38.4    38.5    38.1    38.3 
         Chemicals and allied products.......   43.3    43.0    43.5    43.1    43.4    43.2    43.0    43.3    43.4    43.2 
         Petroleum and coal products.........   43.3    43.9    43.2    43.9    (2)     (2)     (2)     (2)     (2)     (2)  
         Rubber and misc. plastics products..   41.9    41.4    41.3    41.8    42.1    42.0    42.1    41.6    41.3    42.0 
         Leather and leather products........   38.6    38.3    37.2    37.7    38.3    37.6    37.0    38.1    37.3    37.5 
                                                                                                                             
     Service-producing.......................   32.8    33.5    32.7    32.8    32.9    32.9    32.9    32.9    32.8    32.9 
                                                                                                                             
       Transportation and public utilities...   39.8    39.9    39.4    39.3    39.8    39.5    39.6    39.3    39.2    39.3 
                                                                                                                             
       Wholesale trade.......................   38.4    38.7    38.2    38.4    38.4    38.2    38.3    38.4    38.3    38.4 
                                                                                                                             
       Retail trade..........................   28.8    29.9    29.1    28.9    29.0    29.0    29.1    29.0    29.0    29.1 
                                                                                                                             
       Finance, insurance, and real estate...   35.9    36.9    36.0    36.1    (2)     (2)     (2)     (2)     (2)     (2)  
                                                                                                                             
       Services..............................   32.6    33.2    32.3    32.6    32.6    32.7    32.7    32.7    32.5    32.7 

       1 Data relate to production workers in mining and manufacturing; construction workers in construction; and
     nonsupervisory workers in transportation and public utilities; wholesale and retail trade; finance, insurance, and real
     estate; and services. These groups account for approximately four-fifths of the total employees on private nonfarm
     payrolls.
       2 These series are not published seasonally adjusted because the seasonal component, which is small relative to the
     trend-cycle and irregular components, cannot be separated with sufficient precision.
       p = preliminary.




     ESTABLISHMENT DATA                                                                                    ESTABLISHMENT DATA
     
     
     Table B-3. Average hourly and weekly earnings of production or nonsupervisory workers1 on private nonfarm payrolls by
     industry
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
                                                      Average hourly earnings                 Average weekly earnings        
                                                                                                                             
                     Industry                                                                                                
                                                 Oct.      Aug.     Sept.      Oct.      Oct.      Aug.     Sept.      Oct.  
                                                 1997      1998     1998p     1998p      1997      1998     1998p     1998p  
                                                                                                                             
            Total private....................  $12.45    $12.74    $12.88    $12.91    $432.02   $447.17   $441.78   $446.69 
             Seasonally adjusted.............   12.43     12.85     12.87     12.88     430.08    444.61    442.73    445.65 
                                                                                                                             
     Goods-producing.........................   14.11     14.40     14.47     14.49     586.98    594.72    584.59    599.89 
                                                                                                                             
       Mining................................   16.23     16.94     17.15     17.19     735.22    745.36    735.74    756.36 
                                                                                                                             
       Construction..........................   16.33     16.74     16.76     16.85     649.93    671.27    628.50    672.32 
                                                                                                                             
       Manufacturing.........................   13.28     13.44     13.60     13.54     560.42    560.45    564.40    567.33 
                                                                                                                             
        Durable goods........................   13.88     13.93     14.07     14.02     596.84    587.85    588.13    595.85 
         Lumber and wood products............   10.87     11.19     11.20     11.24     451.11    465.50    453.60    466.46 
         Furniture and fixtures..............   10.67     10.95     11.04     11.01     434.27    448.95    441.60    455.81 
         Stone, clay, and glass products.....   13.32     13.63     13.83     13.72     584.75    601.08    607.14    603.68 
         Primary metal industries............   15.33     15.44     15.64     15.36     691.38    676.27    691.29    672.77 
           Blast furnaces and basic steel                                                                                    
              products.......................   18.26     18.46     18.81     18.18     821.70    815.93    829.52    776.29 
         Fabricated metal products...........   12.86     13.06     13.15     13.08     550.41    551.13    547.04    558.52 
         Industrial machinery and equipment..   14.23     14.44     14.51     14.53     617.58    615.14    606.52    611.71 
         Electronic and other electrical                                                                                     
            equipment........................   12.91     13.12     13.20     13.12     540.93    544.48    539.88    545.79 
         Transportation equipment............   17.88     17.32     17.52     17.53     795.66    739.56    755.11    773.07 
           Motor vehicles and equipment......   18.47     17.60     17.83     17.78     831.15    748.00    779.17    789.43 
         Instruments and related products....   13.59     13.76     13.85     13.82     569.42    565.54    563.70    569.38 
         Miscellaneous manufacturing.........   10.64     10.83     10.96     10.98     434.11    432.12    430.73    442.49 
                                                                                                                             
        Nondurable goods.....................   12.39     12.73     12.92     12.84     509.23    521.93    529.72    529.01 
         Food and kindred products...........   11.45     11.75     11.96     11.82     478.61    492.33    508.30    499.99 
         Tobacco products....................   18.05     19.06     18.07     17.27     714.78    749.06    675.82    676.98 
         Textile mill products...............   10.11     10.37     10.47     10.42     418.55    427.24    422.99    427.22 
         Apparel and other textile products..    8.32      8.54      8.63      8.66     312.83    321.10    316.72    326.48 
         Paper and allied products...........   15.17     15.53     15.83     15.62     664.45    669.34    699.69    684.16 
         Printing and publishing.............   13.19     13.46     13.65     13.66     513.09    518.21    526.89    525.91 
         Chemicals and allied products.......   16.65     17.14     17.34     17.32     720.95    737.02    754.29    746.49 
         Petroleum and coal products.........   20.29     20.78     20.79     21.23     878.56    912.24    898.13    932.00 
         Rubber and misc. plastics products..   11.63     11.84     11.98     11.87     487.30    490.18    494.77    496.17 
         Leather and leather products........    9.16      9.29      9.33      9.39     353.58    355.81    347.08    354.00 
                                                                                                                             
     Service-producing.......................   11.88     12.21     12.37     12.39     389.66    409.04    404.50    406.39 
                                                                                                                             
       Transportation and public utilities...  $15.09    $15.33    $15.44    $15.42    $600.58   $611.67   $608.34   $606.01 
                                                                                                                             
       Wholesale trade.......................   13.57     14.13     14.10     14.12     521.09    546.83    538.62    542.21 
                                                                                                                             
       Retail trade..........................    8.47      8.74      8.89      8.83     243.94    261.33    258.70    255.19 
                                                                                                                             
       Finance, insurance, and real estate...   13.56     14.11     14.10     14.20     486.80    520.66    507.60    512.62 
                                                                                                                             
       Services..............................   12.41     12.75     12.97     13.00     404.57    423.30    418.93    423.80 

       1 See footnote 1, table B-2.
       p = preliminary.




                ESTABLISHMENT DATA                                                              ESTABLISHMENT DATA
                
                
                Table B-4. Average hourly earnings of production or nonsupervisory workers1 on private nonfarm
                payrolls by industry, seasonally adjusted
                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                         Percent  
                                                   Oct.     June     July     Aug.     Sept.    Oct.      change  
                            Industry               1997     1998     1998     1998     1998p    1998p     from:   
                                                                                                       Sept. 1998-
                                                                                                        Oct. 1998 
                                                                                                                  
                Total private:                                                                                    
                   Current dollars..............   $12.43   $12.76   $12.79   $12.85   $12.87   $12.88      0.1   
                   Constant (1982) dollars2.....     7.60     7.75     7.75     7.78     7.79     N.A.     (3)    
                                                                                                                  
                  Goods-producing...............    14.05    14.28    14.31    14.39    14.39    14.42       .2   
                    Mining......................    16.37    16.73    16.88    17.10    17.13    17.34      1.2   
                    Construction................    16.17    16.51    16.64    16.67    16.56    16.69       .8   
                    Manufacturing...............    13.30    13.47    13.42    13.52    13.59    13.56      -.2   
                      Excluding overtime4.......    12.58    12.76    12.71    12.81    12.87    12.87       .0   
                                                                                                                  
                  Service-producing.............    11.88    12.26    12.30    12.35    12.38    12.39       .1   
                    Transportation and public                                                                     
                       utilities................    15.05    15.29    15.33    15.35    15.39    15.38      -.1   
                    Wholesale trade.............    13.63    13.98    14.07    14.16    14.11    14.19       .6   
                    Retail trade................     8.46     8.73     8.78     8.83     8.86     8.81      -.6   
                    Finance, insurance, and real                                                                  
                       estate...................    13.60    14.07    14.10    14.16    14.16    14.24       .6   
                    Services....................    12.43    12.87    12.90    12.95    13.00    13.02       .2   

                  1 See footnote 1, table B-2.
                  2 The Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) is used to
                deflate this series.
                  3 Change was .1 percent from August 1998 to September 1998, the latest month available.
                  4 Derived by assuming that overtime hours are paid at the rate of time and one-half.
                    N.A. = not available.
                  p = preliminary.




     ESTABLISHMENT DATA                                                                                    ESTABLISHMENT DATA
     
     
     Table B-5. Indexes of aggregate weekly hours of production or nonsupervisory workers1 on private nonfarm payrolls by
     industry
     
     (1982=100)
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
                                                  Not seasonally adjusted                   Seasonally adjusted              
                                                                                                                             
                     Industry                                                                                                
                                               Oct.   Aug.    Sept.    Oct.    Oct.    June    July   Aug.    Sept.    Oct.  
                                               1997   1998    1998p    1998p   1997    1998    1998   1998    1998p    1998p 
                                                                                                                             
            Total private....................  143.8  149.3   145.2    146.8   142.6  144.8   145.2   145.3   144.7    145.6 
                                                                                                                             
     Goods-producing.........................  117.9  118.2   115.2    117.6   114.9  114.9   114.2   114.7   113.6    114.5 
                                                                                                                             
       Mining................................   58.7   55.6    53.4     54.2    57.8   54.7    55.5    54.0    52.5     53.5 
                                                                                                                             
       Construction..........................  169.3  180.7   166.0    176.9   156.3  160.5   164.6   164.3   159.1    163.0 
                                                                                                                             
       Manufacturing.........................  110.7  108.7   108.3    108.9   109.8  109.0   107.2   108.0   107.8    108.0 
                                                                                                                             
        Durable goods........................  114.1  111.6   110.7    112.3   113.5  112.7   109.9   111.8   111.6    111.7 
         Lumber and wood products............  145.3  148.2   143.8    147.1   141.8  143.7   144.0   143.8   142.2    143.6 
         Furniture and fixtures..............  130.7  134.3   131.1    136.0   128.9  134.4   134.3   133.7   131.7    134.0 
         Stone, clay, and glass products.....  117.0  120.0   119.4    119.4   113.1  114.4   115.2   116.0   114.6    115.7 
         Primary metal industries............   95.6   92.3    93.3     91.5    95.8   94.4    91.1    93.3    93.5     91.6 
           Blast furnaces and basic steel                                                                                    
              products.......................   73.3   71.2    70.9     67.9    73.8   73.7    71.2    71.9    70.7     68.3 
         Fabricated metal products...........  119.5  117.1   115.8    118.6   118.5  118.4   117.0   117.5   117.4    117.8 
         Industrial machinery and equipment..  109.5  107.6   105.9    106.5   110.9  110.9   109.8   110.0   108.5    107.6 
         Electronic and other electrical                                                                                     
            equipment........................  112.1  108.3   106.8    108.4   111.9  110.3   108.7   109.1   107.6    108.2 
         Transportation equipment............  130.6  122.8   124.7    127.9   130.2  124.7   112.2   122.8   126.7    127.3 
           Motor vehicles and equipment......  170.2  153.7   159.7    162.9   169.2  157.2   129.0   153.5   163.3    162.2 
         Instruments and related products....   76.5   75.4    74.6     75.3    76.7   76.1    76.1    75.9    75.2     75.4 
         Miscellaneous manufacturing.........  106.3  101.3   100.8    101.9   103.4  101.6   102.0   101.5   101.4     99.1 
                                                                                                                             
        Nondurable goods.....................  106.0  104.7   105.0    104.2   104.6  104.0   103.5   102.8   102.5    102.9 
         Food and kindred products...........  121.4  124.7   127.2    123.5   116.8  119.3   118.9   116.8   118.5    119.1 
         Tobacco products....................   68.1   60.0    60.3     63.4    62.0   59.9    60.3    58.8    55.0     57.5 
         Textile mill products...............   89.2   85.7    84.8     84.9    89.7   86.9    85.7    85.0    83.4     85.2 
         Apparel and other textile products..   74.0   68.1    66.4     66.9    72.6   68.5    68.3    67.5    66.5     65.6 
         Paper and allied products...........  111.5  109.2   111.8    109.9   111.2  110.5   109.4   109.1   110.2    109.8 
         Printing and publishing.............  127.1  125.5   125.1    124.8   126.5  125.0   125.4   125.4   124.0    124.5 
         Chemicals and allied products.......  101.8  102.6   103.3    102.2   102.0  103.1   102.6   102.8   103.0    102.4 
         Petroleum and coal products.........   76.8   76.5    74.8     75.5    74.0   73.1    75.5    73.8    72.6     72.6 
         Rubber and misc. plastics products..  147.6  146.2   146.4    148.2   147.4  148.4   147.0   146.6   145.9    148.0 
         Leather and leather products........   40.3   35.7    34.2     34.3    39.4   35.8    34.7    35.1    33.8     33.4 
                                                                                                                             
     Service-producing.......................  155.4  163.2   158.7    159.9   155.0  158.2   159.1   159.0   158.7    159.6 
                                                                                                                             
       Transportation and public utilities...  132.2  132.7   132.3    132.9   130.9  130.5   131.4   131.2   130.8    131.5 
                                                                                                                             
       Wholesale trade.......................  127.3  130.7   128.9    129.9   126.7  127.9   128.6   129.0   129.0    129.3 
                                                                                                                             
       Retail trade..........................  138.3  146.9   142.4    141.5   138.9  140.7   141.9   141.3   141.5    141.9 
                                                                                                                             
       Finance, insurance, and real estate...  129.3  139.9   134.7    135.3   130.2  134.8   136.1   136.2   135.8    136.4 
                                                                                                                             
       Services..............................  190.1  200.1   193.8    196.8   189.0  194.5   195.2   195.2   194.5    196.1 

       1 See footnote 1, table B-2.
       p = preliminary.




      ESTABLISHMENT DATA                                                                                   ESTABLISHMENT DATA
      
      
      Table B-6.  Diffusion indexes of employment change, seasonally adjusted
      
      (Percent)
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
             Time span          Jan.    Feb.    Mar.    Apr.    May     June    July    Aug.   Sept.    Oct.    Nov.    Dec. 
                                                                                                                             
                              
                                                         Private nonfarm payrolls, 356 industries1
                              
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
      Over 1-month span:                                                                                                     
           1994..............   59.3    60.5    67.0    64.5    58.6    63.3    63.8    61.7    61.5    60.4    64.0    61.7 
           1995..............   62.5    60.0    54.9    55.6    47.8    55.6    54.8    59.0    58.0    55.8    54.5    58.8 
           1996..............   50.8    64.6    59.6    56.6    62.8    61.0    57.3    61.5    56.0    62.5    62.2    60.7 
           1997..............   58.0    61.4    59.8    63.6    60.1    54.6    61.1    59.1    60.0    64.3    62.4    64.9 
           1998..............   63.8    58.7    59.6    56.9    56.6    59.0    55.1    53.9   p52.8   p51.0                 
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
      Over 3-month span:                                                                                                     
           1994..............   64.5    69.2    69.9    68.4    66.6    67.1    69.0    69.5    66.2    65.6    66.6    66.3 
           1995..............   63.6    61.4    59.4    53.1    55.2    53.2    59.7    60.1    59.1    58.0    56.6    54.6 
           1996..............   61.9    62.8    64.0    63.8    63.5    64.9    64.2    61.5    63.9    64.2    67.0    66.6 
           1997..............   64.9    63.3    65.6    66.2    63.9    61.2    60.1    65.9    67.4    68.1    70.8    71.9 
           1998..............   68.4    67.3    64.2    61.7    60.4    58.4    57.2   p56.3   p54.1                         
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
      Over 6-month span:                                                                                                     
           1994..............   70.9    69.9    69.7    71.2    70.2    69.8    69.8    70.2    68.7    67.4    66.7    65.4 
           1995..............   66.4    60.1    59.1    57.3    59.0    60.1    57.6    60.4    59.7    59.3    61.1    63.2 
           1996..............   62.8    65.4    64.7    65.7    66.2    65.0    66.4    66.0    66.2    67.6    66.9    66.3 
           1997..............   67.6    67.0    65.3    64.9    65.6    67.3    68.0    67.3    70.6    72.3    73.3    72.6 
           1998..............   72.1    70.9    69.4    63.5    64.5   p61.2   p57.6                                         
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
      Over 12-month span:                                                                                                    
           1994..............   70.2    71.6    71.8    71.8    72.1    71.8    71.5    72.1    70.1    69.5    66.6    65.0 
           1995..............   63.6    62.4    62.6    63.3    61.7    61.9    58.7    62.2    62.2    61.5    63.5    65.4 
           1996..............   64.5    66.7    64.5    65.6    68.5    67.3    67.7    66.4    68.0    69.9    69.1    68.3 
           1997..............   69.8    67.6    69.2    70.1    69.8    69.8    71.2    71.2    71.1    73.0    72.9    72.3 
           1998..............   71.2    69.5   p69.7   p66.2                                                                 
                                                                                                                             
                              
                                                          Manufacturing payrolls, 139 industries1
                              
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
      Over 1-month span:                                                                                                     
           1994..............   56.8    56.5    60.1    59.0    53.6    58.3    59.0    55.8    53.6    56.5    58.3    56.8 
           1995..............   54.7    54.3    46.4    53.2    42.4    44.2    46.4    49.6    48.6    52.2    45.3    48.2 
           1996..............   42.8    54.7    48.2    42.1    55.4    50.7    47.1    55.4    47.8    52.9    54.3    55.4 
           1997..............   49.3    54.3    50.0    56.8    51.4    52.2    50.4    48.9    56.5    57.2    56.1    60.8 
           1998..............   55.8    51.8    52.5    48.6    45.0    47.8    39.6    47.5   p41.7   p38.1                 
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
      Over 3-month span:                                                                                                     
           1994..............   60.4    63.7    63.7    60.4    57.6    59.7    61.9    56.8    54.3    55.4    60.8    59.0 
           1995..............   56.8    50.0    47.8    42.1    43.2    38.8    40.6    43.5    48.2    47.1    45.3    39.9 
           1996..............   43.9    46.8    46.0    47.5    46.4    49.3    51.4    50.0    53.6    51.1    57.6    54.7 
           1997..............   54.3    49.3    54.3    54.0    55.4    50.4    47.5    52.2    57.9    62.6    64.7    65.5 
           1998..............   60.1    59.0    50.7    46.4    43.2    38.8    36.7   p35.6   p40.6                         
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
      Over 6-month span:                                                                                                     
           1994..............   60.4    62.9    61.2    62.6    59.4    57.2    57.6    58.6    58.6    54.7    57.2    55.0 
           1995..............   55.4    46.4    42.8    40.3    41.4    42.4    41.0    41.0    43.9    43.2    43.2    45.3 
           1996..............   42.1    45.3    46.4    47.1    48.2    48.6    51.1    50.4    52.9    52.9    53.2    52.2 
           1997..............   54.3    54.3    51.4    52.9    51.4    55.0    56.8    57.6    60.4    64.4    67.6    65.8 
           1998..............   61.5    56.8    52.2    39.2    40.6   p35.3   p30.2                                         
                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                             
      Over 12-month span:                                                                                                    
           1994..............   57.9    58.6    60.8    60.8    60.8    63.3    59.4    60.1    57.2    56.5    50.4    49.6 
           1995..............   46.0    44.2    46.0    47.8    41.0    41.7    38.5    38.8    36.3    38.5    39.9    44.6 
           1996..............   43.5    47.5    45.3    45.3    50.4    49.6    50.4    48.6    51.1    55.0    54.0    51.8 
           1997..............   57.2    52.5    54.7    56.5    57.9    57.6    58.6    58.6    60.4    60.4    59.4    58.3 
           1998..............   50.7    51.1   p51.4   p41.0                                                                 

        1 Based on seasonally adjusted data for 1-, 3-, and 6-month spans and unadjusted data for the 12-month span. Data are
      centered within the span. 
        p = preliminary.
        NOTE:  Figures are the percent of industries with employment increasing plus one-half of the industries with
      unchanged employment, where 50 percent indicates an equal balance between industries with increasing and decreasing
      employment.