Statement by Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Pizzella on the August Jobs Report

WASHINGTON, DC – Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Patrick Pizzella issued the following statement on the August 2019 Employment Situation report:

"America's economy continued to show strength in August. The 3.7% unemployment rate marks the eighteenth straight month the unemployment rate has been at or below 4%. Unemployment rates for African-Americans set a new record low at 5.5% and Hispanic-Americans matched a record low at 4.2%.

"Since January of 2017 more than 5.8 million jobs have been created including the 130,000 jobs created in August.

"America's workers are seeing the benefits of the strong job market in their paychecks. Wages year-over-year increased by 3.2%. For thirteen months, wage growth has been at or exceeded 3.0%. An important note is that average hourly earnings for production and nonsupervisory employees had the largest one month increase in the series history that dates back to 1964.

"In the coming months, the Administration's efforts to cut red tape and adopt the USMCA will ensure that America's workers receive the benefits of greater opportunity, higher wages, and an economy which keeps growing stronger."