The economy added 29,000 jobs in September and the unemployment rate was 4.2%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on October 2. BLS called both little changed. The revisions said more than the headline: July went from a gain of 21,000 to a loss of 10,000, and August from 162,000 to 133,000. Together the two months now show 60,000 fewer jobs than first reported.
After revisions, July through September averaged about 51,000 jobs a month. The average over the prior 12 months was 45,000. That describes a job market adding work slowly, not one that is breaking down or running hot. The unemployment rate has stayed between 4.1% and 4.3% since March.
| Month (2026) | First reported | Latest estimate |
|---|---|---|
| July | +21,000 | −10,000 |
| August | +162,000 | +133,000 |
| September | +29,000 | +29,000 (first estimate) |
Health care added 17,000, about half its 12-month average of 33,000. Construction added 11,000 and manufacturing 9,000; manufacturing is up 72,000 since a low in December 2025. Financial activities lost 7,000 and is down 129,000 since May 2025, most of it at insurance carriers. Every major industry was described as little changed for the month.
Average hourly earnings for private-sector workers rose 5 cents to $37.81, up 3.0% over the year. Consumer prices were up 3.4% over the 12 months through August, the latest CPI available; September's CPI comes out October 14. Wages growing 3.0% while prices grow 3.4% means the typical paycheck buys slightly less than it did a year ago.
The number that matters: on a $60,000 salary, a 3.0% raise is $1,800. Matching 3.4% inflation would have taken $2,040. Measured in today's prices, the shortfall is about $232 of buying power over the year, close to $19 a month.
For the average private-sector worker, $37.81 an hour over the 34.4-hour average week is $1,300.66 a week, about $67,600 a year. That is a mean across full- and part-time workers, so plenty of people earn well below it.
Two practical points. First, slow hiring means job searches run long: 1.9 million people had been unemployed for 27 weeks or more, 27.1% of everyone out of work. If your job feels shaky, size the emergency fund for a search of several months, not several weeks. Second, if you are heading into a raise conversation, know the inflation number in dollars. Anything below about 3.4% is a pay cut in real terms, and showing that figure on your own salary is more persuasive than a percentage.
For the Fed, which raised rates in September and signaled more, a 29,000 print with downward revisions is a softer reading than the "close to maximum employment" picture in its minutes. The October report arrives November 6, after the Fed's October 27–28 meeting.
Put the numbers on your own pay. The Raise Calculator shows a raise in dollars and against inflation, and the Emergency Fund Calculator sizes a cushion for a longer job search.
Related tools: Raise Calculator · Hourly to Salary Calculator · Emergency Fund Calculator · Personal Inflation Calculator