Environmental Career Center – Helping people work for a better environment since 1980

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports today (January 4) that USA employment added 155,000 jobs in December with the unemployment rate stable at 7.8%.  The private sector created 168,000 jobs, while government employment continued to contract by eliminating 13,000 jobs.  A total of 1.84 million jobs were added in 2012, the Labor Department said Friday.  Many economists expected December’s jobs report to show that employers added about 150,000 jobs in December.  This is the 34th straight month of positive job growth.  125,000 jobs are needed each month to keep up with growth in the potential labor force.

In related economic developments, 5.4 million jobs have been created in the past 32 months.  The auto industry alone has added 250,000 jobs after being rescued five years ago.   GM is now the the number one car company once again in the world as Chrysler has become the fastest growing car company in the USA.