FOR DELIVERY: 9:30 A.M., E.S.T.
                         FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2002

Advance copies of this statement are made available to the
press under lock-up conditions with the explicit
understanding that the data are embargoed until 8:30 a.m.
Eastern Standard Time.


                        Statement of
                              
                          Lois Orr
                     Acting Commissioner
                 Bureau of Labor Statistics
                              
                    Friday, April 5, 2002



     Good morning.  I appreciate this opportunity to comment
on the labor market data that we released this morning.
     
     Nonfarm payroll employment was little changed in March
(up 58,000) and, after revision, was essentially unchanged
(down 2,000) in February.  The data for March and for
February provide a marked contrast to the average monthly
job losses of 144,000 that prevailed from March 2001 through
January 2002.  Over the month, employment gains in services
and local government were tempered by declines in
construction and manufacturing.  Factory job losses, though,
have moderated in recent months, and factory hours have
risen.  The unemployment rate was little changed in March at
5.7 percent.

     Looking in more detail at the data from our survey of
employers for March, employment declines continued in
manufacturing (-38,000), although at the slowest pace since
late 2000.  Over the year ending in January, job losses in
manufacturing had averaged 111,000 per month.  Employment in
aircraft manufacturing fell by 9,000 (including nearly 3,000
strikers) in March, with losses totaling 42,000 since
September.  Employment declines in electrical equipment
(-10,000), industrial machinery (-7,000), and in printing
and publishing (-5,000) were considerably smaller than the
average losses of the prior 12 months.  Rubber and
miscellaneous plastics added jobs for the first time since
July.  In a further sign of improvement, the factory
workweek increased by 0.4 hour to 41.1 hours, and factory
overtime rose 0.3 hour to 4.2 hours.

     Construction employment fell by 37,000 in March, after
seasonal adjustment, following an increase in February.  The
March loss was concentrated in heavy construction.
Employment in services increased by 118,000 in March.  This
is the largest job gain in services in a year and a half;
employment in the industry has nearly recovered from the
combined loss of 245,000 jobs in October and November of
last year.  In March, help supply services added 69,000
jobs, following a modest gain in February.  Job losses in
the help supply industry had totaled 666,000 from September
2000 through January 2002, reflecting the weak demand for
temporary workers in a variety of industries, including
manufacturing.  Employment in health services continued its
strong growth trend with a gain of 32,000 jobs in March,
including 10,000 in hospitals.  Engineering and management
services added 21,000 jobs in February and March combined.

     Local government education added 27,000 jobs in March,
about twice the monthly average of the prior year.
Elsewhere, finance employment was little changed over the
month following a decline in February.  Employment in
insurance continued its downward trend; the industry has
lost 20,000 jobs since September.  Retail trade employment
was flat in March.  Employment in the industry is more than
150,000 below its peak reached last July; most of that
shortfall has been in eating and drinking places.

     Average hourly earnings of production or nonsupervisory
workers in the private sector rose 4 cents to $14.67 in
March.  This followed a gain of 4 cents in February (as
revised).  Hourly earnings increased by 3.5 percent from
March 2001.

     Turning to some of the measures obtained from the
survey of households, both the number of unemployed persons,
at 8.1 million, and the unemployment rate, at 5.7 percent,
were little changed in March.  The rate has been within two-
tenths of a percentage point of 5.6 percent in each of the
last 6 months.  The jobless rate for blacks rose in March,
while the rates for adult men, adult women, teenagers,
whites, and Hispanics were essentially the same as in
February.

     To summarize, in March, a large increase in services
employment offset declines in construction and
manufacturing.  Manufacturing job losses have slowed,
though, and the factory workweek and overtime hours were up.
The unemployment rate has remained in a relatively narrow
range for the past 6 months.


     My colleagues and I now would be glad to answer your
questions.