The percentage of unemployment attributable to job leavers jumped by more than a percentage point to 14.3 percent, almost matching its 14.4 percent high for the cycle set in December. This suggests workers are confident enough about their job prospects to quit one job before having another job lined up. In addition to the addition of the census workers, the payroll data for March was also distorted by the inclusion of a fifth week between surveys and also the unusually weak numbers from February. Taking all these factors into account, there is little basis for claiming that the economy is currently adding jobs at an unsustainable pace. The rate of private sector job growth since December has been 201,000 per month.
Construction continues to show surprising strength, given recent hikes in interest rates.
It added 89,000 jobs in March and has added 183,000 over the last quarter. This is an annual growth rate of 12.0 percent. Manufacturing employment fell by 5,000 jobs in March. After falling sharply since March of 1998, employment in this sector has been virtually unchanged since last October. Retail trade added just 3,000 jobs after losing 22,000 jobs in February.