172,000 jobs added in May as US job market remains resilient despite Iran war
Construction workers on a newly constructed building rooftop on June 25, 2025 in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington. (Photo by Tom Brenner For The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Employers in the United States added 172,000 jobs in May, almost doubling the number forecasters predicted. However, the unemployment rate remains low at 4.3%.
Revised March and April jobs report shows gains in both months
Total payroll growth was revised higher for both March and April. March’s gain was up 29,000 to 214,000 and April was up 64,000 to 179,000. Collectively, those revisions mean employment for March and April is now 93,000 higher than first reported.
Leisure and hospitality industry up above average
Leisure and hospitality employers added 70,000 jobs in May. In the past 12 months the average gain has only been 14,000. Food and drinking places added 48,000 jobs for the month.
Government employment increase
Likely due to the gains in local government, jobs there rose by 55,000, not including education.
Financial sector employment down
Employment in the financial industry declined by 22,000 for the month. That number is down 107,000 since it last peaked a year ago. Commercial banking, insurance carriers and related activities saw losses over the month.
Health care is up in May
In line with the monthly increase of 38,000 over the past year, health care saw an increase with 35,000 jobs in May. Ambulatory health care added 26,000 jobs and 11,000 were in home health care. Hospitals continued to trend up as well, adding 6,000.
The Source: Information in this article was sourced from the US Department of Labor and The Associated Press. This story was reported from Orlando.