September Jobs Report Adds Only 29,000 Jobs, Unemployment Rises to 4.2%

NewsData.io · United States · Oct 2, 2026

The U.S. economy added just 29,000 jobs in September, far below the roughly 90,000 expected, while the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.2% from 4.1% in August. Wage growth also disappointed, with average hourly earnings rising only 0.1% month-over-month and 3% year-over-year — below the 3.4% inflation rate, suggesting employers hold the upper hand. Prior months were revised down by a combined 60,000 jobs. For staffing firms, the data signals a low-hire, low-fire environment in which candidate flow may be constrained by job-hugging behavior and client demand for new placements remains soft.