Healthcare employment up in January

Editor's Note

Healthcare employment in the US rose by 70,300 from January to February, according to the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, released on February 2. That is compared to an overall monthly gain of 353,000 in January—similar to the 333,000 gained in December—for a total of 17,365,600 seasonally adjusted workers. In contrast, overall employment rose by an average of 255,000 per month in 2023.

In January, healthcare employment trended up also in:

• ambulatory healthcare services rose by 33,400
• hospital employment rose by 20,400
• nursing and residential care facilities rose by 16,500.

The overall unemployment rate stayed consistent at 3.7% "for the third month in a row, and the number of unemployed people was little changed at 6.1 million," according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics news release also released on February 2.