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Industry Insights

August Jobs Report

By Jeffrey Burnett | September 09, 2026

The latest jobs report shows a labor market that continues to send mixed signals. The U.S. economy added 162,000 jobs this month, while unemployment remained steady and layoffs stayed historically low. At the same time, job openings have fallen to some of their lowest levels in years outside of the pandemic.

What does that mean for employers and job seekers? Labor Finders CEO Jeffrey Burnett breaks down the latest BLS data.

Watch the full video here.

🎥 Labor Market in a Minute - August 2026 Jobs Report

Video Transcript

Hi, I'm Jeff Burnett, CEO of Labor Finders, and welcome to this month's Labor Market a Minute.

How many jobs were added to the economy?

For the month of August, non-farm payroll employment increased by 162,000 jobs. This was a significant increase from the prior month. Now, as always is the case, the prior two months were revised, and in this case, for June and July. It resulted in an increase of 55,000 jobs from what was originally reported. So this month's job data was significantly above expectations.

What is this month's unemployment rate?

The unemployment rate is unchanged at 4.1% from the prior month.

What is the inflation rate?

Fed target rate for inflation is a 2% and the inflation rate for the last 12 months is at 3.4% for all goods and services and this is slightly down from the prior month. The Fed continues to balance inflation with interest rates in the labor market and given the higher than desired inflation rate, this will be a primary importance for the Fed to monitor and contain.

What is the status of job openings?

Job openings are at their lowest rate in eight years outside of the pandemic, and layoffs are historically low. 

What is the status of the GDP?

GDP decreased from 2.1% in the first quarter to 1.5% in the second quarter. So the US economy is showing modest expansion, growing but not at a rapid pace considering the global geopolitical events.

What industries are adding jobs this month?

Food and drinking places had an increase of 59,000 jobs, local government education an increase of 42,000, Construction increased 22,000 jobs, manufacturing 16,000. Healthcare gained 13,000 jobs this past month and information had a decrease of 20 to 3000 jobs.

So that's it for this month's Labor Market in a Minute. Thank you for joining.

Jeffrey Burnett is the Chief Executive Officer of Labor Finders, a nationwide staffing company connecting businesses with dependable workers and helping people find meaningful employment. Under his 27 years of leadership, Labor Finders has continued to help businesses navigate changing workforce needs while staying focused on the company’s commitment to making staffing easier for employers and job seekers.

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