U.S. job creation cools in June with payrolls growth of just 57,000; unemployment rate at 4.2%

• Nonfarm payrolls for June increased by 57,000 in June, slower than the downwardly revised 129,000 added in May and worse than the 115,000 Dow Jones consensus forecast.
• The unemployment rate, however, dropped to 4.2%, largely due to a slump in the labor force participation rate, which fell 0.3 percentage point to 61.5%, the lowest since March 2021.
• Household employment plummeted during the month, with 507,000 fewer people reported at work.
• Professional and business services contributed the most, with a gain of 36,000. Social assistance added 25,000 and healthcare employment rose by 22,000.

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/02/jobs-report-june-2026-.html