Labor · Sunday, September 6, 2026
The country added 162,000 jobs. Unemployment stayed 4.1 percent.
The File desk · Sep. 6, 2026, 10:18 a.m. ET
Confirmed3 primary sources
Status
Confirmed from the Bureau of Labor Statistics release text. Payrolls rose 162,000 in August. Unemployment stayed 4.1 percent. About 7.0 million people were unemployed. A direct fetch of the Bureau’s HTML still returns 403 to bots. The official text was opened.
The country added 162,000 jobs in August. The jobless rate stayed 4.1 percent. About 7.0 million people were still out of work. Food services and drinking places hired. So did local government education. The information industry cut jobs. Private hourly pay rose to $37.75. The next count is Friday, Oct. 2.
The country added 162,000 jobs in August.
The unemployment rate did not move. It was 4.1 percent. About 7.0 million people were unemployed.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics published those figures at 8:30 a.m. Eastern on Friday, Sept. 4. The official text said: “Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000 in August, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.1 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in food services and drinking places and in local government education. The information industry lost jobs.”
Jobs rose in food services and drinking places, and in local government education. The information industry lost jobs.
Hourly pay for private workers rose 10 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $37.75. That is up 3.1 percent from a year earlier. Labor-force participation was 61.6 percent.
The Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, citing the same report, said leisure and hospitality added about 62,000 jobs and government about 35,000. It said July payrolls were revised from a loss to a gain. Reuters printed the same 62,000 and 35,000 figures, citing the Bureau. This desk could not open the St. Louis page on Sunday. The exact size of the July revision is not in the official sentences used here.
The September report is due Friday, Oct. 2, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. A direct fetch of bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm still returned 403 to bots. The official release text was opened.
How we know
What is still unknown or disputed
- Exact July revision magnitudes are not in the official sentences used here.
- St. Louis Fed flash-report page timed out on this desk pass.
Primary sources
Every claim in this story is drawn from the documents below. If a fetch failed, that is recorded on the card.
Source 1
THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION — AUGUST 2026
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · September 4, 2026
Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000 in August, and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.1 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in food services and drinking places and in local government education. The information industry lost jobs. Unemployed 7.0 million. Participation 61.6 percent. Average hourly earnings rose 10 cents (0.3 percent) to $37.75; up 3.1 percent over the year. Next release Friday, October 2, 2026, 8:30 a.m. ET.
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm
Source 2 · fetch incomplete
Flash Report: U.S. Unemployment Flows in August
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis · September 4, 2026
headline unemployment 4.1%; payrolls +162,000; leisure and hospitality and government drove gains; July revised upward.
https://www.stlouisfed.org/on-the-economy/2026/sep/flash-report-unemployment-remains-steady-payrolls-rise-august
Source 3
US nonfarm payrolls blow past expectations in August; unemployment rate steady at 4.1%
Reuters · September 4, 2026
Labor Department BLS said payrolls surged 162,000; unemployment unchanged 4.1%; participation 61.6%.
https://www.reuters.com/business/us-nonfarm-payrolls-surge-august-unemployment-rate-steady-41-2026-09-04/