The closely watched employment report further revealed a surge in people undergoing long periods of joblessness, putting weight on Congress to form yet another rescue package.
The report only included the first two weeks of November, when the current surge of coronavirus infections began. Infections, hospitalizations and death rates have broken records, directing some economists to expect a drop in employment in December or January as more jurisdictions launch new limitations on businesses and consumers shun crowded places like restaurants.
"This is a disappointing report, and one that shows the third wave of the pandemic is having a bigger effect on hiring than had been thought," said Brad McMillan, chief investment officer for Commonwealth Financial Network. "Prospects for a continued strong recovery in consumer spending may be at risk. This is a wake-up call for the Congress and should support more Federal stimulus."
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Nonfarm payrolls rose by 245,000 jobs last month after growing by 610,000 in October, the Labor Department explained on Friday. That was the tiniest gain since the jobs recovery began in May. The fifth straight monthly slowdown in job gains left employment 9.8 million below its February peak.
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Job growth last month was withdrawn by further departures of temporary workers hired for the 2020 Census. States and local governments are likewise assumed to have shed more workers, leaving overall government payrolls to drop by 99,000 jobs, the second straight monthly decline. The private sector added 344,000 jobs.
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Economists polled by Reuters had projected payrolls would grow by 469,000 jobs in November. Hiring topped at 4.781 million jobs in June. Reports on consumer spending, manufacturing and services industries have implied a slowdown in the recovery from the worst slump since the Great Depression.
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The United States is amid a new surge of COVID-19 infections. Almost 200,000 new cases were recorded on Wednesday and hospitalizations approached a record 100,000 patients, according to a Reuters tally of official data.
A bipartisan, $908 billion coronavirus aid plan got momentum in Congress on Thursday as conservative lawmakers showed their support and leaders in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives huddled together.
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More than $3 trillion in government COVID-19 relief served millions of unemployed Americans to handle daily expenses and firms keep workers on payrolls, leading to record economic growth in the third quarter. The uncontrolled pandemic and lack of additional fiscal stimulus could result in the economy contracting in the first quarter of 2021.