Despite the recent turbulence on Wall Street, there have been no early signs that the job market has been negatively impacted, with the unemployment rate edging down to 5.1 percent last month.
“So far, there is no indication that the volatility that has claimed equity prices is having an imperial impact on the labor market,” says Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics. “What matters to most folks is, are we creating jobs? Are they in most parts of the country? Are they in most industries? Are they across all pay scales? And the definitive answer is yes. The job market is doing well and producing lots of jobs in all corners of the country.”
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 173,000 jobs were created in August. According to ADP’s National Franchise Report, 22,800 franchise jobs were created during the month and, within that sector, 900 accommodations jobs were added.
Zandi explains that any deviation from the typical high numbers the job market has been enjoying is due to the season.
“We have a lot of summer workers—temporary seasonal workers—that begin to leave their work in late July, early August, and continue to do so through the month, into September,” he says.
