Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 119,000 jobs in September, the U.S. Bureau of Statistics belatedly announced Nov. 20 — an unexpectedly high number complicated by downward revisions for July and August.
The unemployment rate also rose to 4.4%, a slight increase from August and a sharper difference from the 4.1% recorded a year ago, economists said.
Of note, revised August numbers signaled a loss of 4,000 jobs instead of a gain of 22,000 jobs, BLS said. September’s numbers showcase job market resiliency that had at least been present before the shutdown, Glassdoor’s Chief Economist Daniel Zhao said in a statement, but the combination does create a “muddy” picture, he added.
Other reports were not nearly as optimistic regarding September. ADP’s National Employment Report said that the economy actually shed 32,000 jobs that month. Revelio Labs, more optimistic, announced the economy added 60,000 jobs — just under half of that announced by BLS Thursday.
The impact of the government shutdown may not be seen until the November report is published Dec. 16, and economists won’t know if the market has recovered until the December report arrives in January 2026, Zhao noted in a writeup for Glassdoor.
“As hiring remains tepid and job growth hovers near stall speed, the labor market appears stuck in a holding pattern,” ZipRecruiter Economist Nicole Bachaud said in a statement. “Whether this represents a temporary soft patch or the beginning of a more serious slowdown remains to be seen.”
Other reports released in October and early November also point to a more complicated jobs market — notable, since BLS announced it will not be publishing numbers for October outside of the establishment survey data it was able to gather, which will be available in November’s report.
ADP and Revelio Labs both revealed job market losses in October, while Challenger, Gray & Christmas published a layoffs report indicating that October 2025 layoffs were the highest of any October in 22 years.
Generally speaking, the market seems to have swung back in favor of employers, Glassdoor said earlier this month. And so far, jobs reports don’t showcase a labor supply contraction, Appcast Chief Economist Andrew Flowers said in a statement.
“Yes, the unemployment rate rose, but for ‘good’ reasons — on account of a surge in the labor force by 470,000 people,” Flowers said.
Whether that momentum will keep up moving into December, however, is the question that may hover over employers’ heads.