The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (USDL)reported total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 288,000, and the unemployment rate fell by 0.4 percentage points to 6.3% in April, the lowest since September 2008.

The USDL said gains were widespread, led by job growth in professional and business services, retail trade, food services and drinking
places, and construction.

In April, the number of unemployed reentrants and new entrants declined by 417,000 and 126,000, respectively. (Reentrants are persons who previously worked but were not in the labor force prior to beginning their job search, and new entrants are persons who have never worked.) The number of job losers and persons who completed temporary jobs decreased by 253,000 to 5.2 million, the USDL said.

The USDL said the change in total nonfarm payroll employment for February was revised from +197,000 to +222,000, and the change for March was revised from +192,000 to +203,000. With these revisions, employment gains in February and March were 36,000 higher than previously reported.

To read the full Department of Labor news release,
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