US lost 95,000 jobs in September

By Shanthi Venkataraman, TheStreet

The economy shed more jobs than expected in September, with private-sector employment showing only modest growth and government employment falling sharply, the Labor Department said today.

The number of employed Americans fell by 95,000 in September. Economists were expecting the figure to be little changed, according to estimates from Briefing.com. The U.S. economy lost 57,000 jobs in August, revised from 54,000.

The unemployment rate was unchanged at 9.6%. Economists had expected the rate to climb to 9.7%. The number of discouraged workers -- those who no longer look for work because they believe no jobs are available -- rose by 503,000 to 1.2 million.

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U.S. companies added 64,000 jobs during the month, lower than the projected increase of 75,000. Estimates of economists polled by TheStreet ranged from 60,000 to 100,000.

The government shed 159,000 jobs, reflecting the loss of temporary jobs related to the census and job losses in local government. Economists were expecting more job losses at the local government level as state governments battle heavy deficits and cut education costs.

The health care sector added 24,000 jobs in September. It has added 21,000 jobs per month on average this year.

The services sector added 28,000 jobs, with temporary help accounting for most of the gains. Leisure and hospitality showed the strongest job gains, employing 34,000 more people.

Construction, which has borne the brunt of the recession, shed 21,000 in September after adding 19,000 in August. The sector has shown little change in payrolls this year.

Employment in manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade was little changed.

The average workweek for all employees remained unchanged at 34.2 hours. Average hourly earnings rose 1 cent to $22.67 in September.

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