The U.S unemployment rate soared to 4.6% in November 2025, recent data published by the United States Department of Labor on Tuesday has revealed.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the U.S unemployment rate in November 2025 increased to 4.6%, despite the economy adding 64,000 nonfarm payroll jobs.
The report was released after it was delayed due to the recent 43-day federal government shutdown. This disconnect has pushed the jobless rate to its highest level since 2021.
While the addition of 64,000 jobs in November exceeded the consensus economist forecast of 40,000, it follows a brutal October where the economy lost 105,000 positions.
A breakdown of the jobs added revealed that health care added 46,000 jobs, according to the report, 11,000 of which were in nursing and residential care facilities.
Employment in construction, which the Labor Department said had held fairly steady over the previous 12 months, rose by 28,000 jobs.
On the other hand, the transportation and warehousing sector saw 18,000 job losses in November. Employment in manufacturing fell by 5,000 jobs.
Economists had forecast payroll gains of 40,000 jobs in November, according to a poll by FactSet.
The Labor Department on Tuesday also released partial employment data from October, which shows a loss of 105,000 jobs that month. Analysts had expected the October data might be weak, due to federal deferred resignation buyout offers, according to FactSet.
Job growth for August and September was also revised down by a collective 33,000.
While the data shows the unemployment rate has risen, it also shows an increase in hourly pay.
Average hourly earnings for all employees on private payrolls (not including farms) edged up by five cents, to $36.86, it says.
Over the past year, wages have increased 3.5% overall. The length of the average workweek also increased slightly by 0.1 hour, it says.
The government’s official employment data for October and November had been delayed due to the 43-day government shutdown, which ended last month.
In the absence of federal data, economists at the Federal Reserve and on Wall Street had been monitoring alternative sources, which have signaled ongoing headwinds in the labor market. For instance, ADP earlier this month said private-sector employers in the U.S. cut 32,000 jobs in November, while outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas has tracked more than 1.1 million layoffs so far this year.
Economic uncertainty has led workers to stay put and employers to pull back on hiring, creating a difficult situation for job seekers, especially those early in their careers.
The labor market is slowly cooling, Federal Reserve Bank of New York president John C. Williams said in a speech Monday.
“I should emphasize that this has been an ongoing, gradual process, without signs of a sharp rise in layoffs or other indications of rapid deterioration,” Williams said. But, he added, “Job growth has been anemic.”
