Statement by U.S. Secretary of Labor Acosta on the December Jobs Report

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta issued the following statement on the December 2017 Employment Situation report:

“December’s jobs report shows steady growth with 148,000 jobs created.  The unemployment rate remains at 4.1%, a 17-year low.

“The American workforce showed impressive strength in 2017 with 2.06 million jobs created.  Manufacturing and mining and logging outperformed other industries, reversing job losses in 2016 by creating more than 250,000 new jobs in 2017.  Construction also outperformed 2016 figures, creating 210,000 new jobs in 2017.  Hispanic and African-American unemployment rates reached all-time lows in 2017.  In the last two reported quarters, the GDP growth rate exceeded 3%.  Measures of consumer and business confidence reached highs unseen in more than a decade.  Americans’ retirement savings benefited from dramatic gains, fueled by a more than 35% increase in the stock market since Election Day 2016.

“With President Trump signing tax reform into law, 2018 will continue last year’s successes and, we hope, bring needed increases in wages and labor force participation.  Job creation, wage growth, and retirement savings drive prosperity and financial security.  Strong growth in all is necessary.”