Statement by U.S. Secretary of Labor Scalia on the September Jobs Report

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia issued the following statement on the September 2019 Employment Situation report:

"In September, the unemployment rate dropped to a 50-year low at 3.5%. This was the nineteenth straight month that the unemployment rate has been at or below 4%.

"Low unemployment rates were widespread across Americans of many backgrounds. The unemployment rate for Americans with less than a high school diploma dropped to a record low since reporting began in 1992. The African-American unemployment rate held at a record low from August and the unemployment rate for Hispanic-Americans set a new record low. Adult women matched their lowest unemployment rate during the Trump Administration at 3.1%, which is the lowest since 1953.

"It is welcome news that Americans with disabilities set a new record low unemployment rate, as we observe National Disability Employment Awareness Month this October.

"In September, 136,000 new jobs were added, and upward revisions for July and August added an additional 45,000 jobs. Since January 2017, the U.S. economy has added more than six million jobs. There are now 158,269,000 Americans employed.  

"Pro-jobs measures like USMCA will offer the American workforce still more job opportunities and will build on this economic expansion. With record low unemployment rates, the U.S. Department of Labor continues to prioritize apprenticeship expansion, opioid recovery, and skills development as part of the Pledge to America's Workers, with the goal of filling millions of open jobs and fostering prosperous careers."