US Nonfarm Payrolls Rose 172,000 in May While Unemployment Held at 4.3%

WASHINGTON, June 5, 2026 — US nonfarm payroll employment rose by 172,000 in May, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today, while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.3 percent.

Job gains occurred in leisure and hospitality, local government, and health care. Employment in financial activities declined. Average hourly earnings increased 0.3 percent in the month.

The May gain follows an April increase of 165,000, according to the BLS release. The unemployment rate has remained between 4.1 percent and 4.3 percent for the past six months. The report covers the household and establishment surveys conducted for the week including the 12th of the month.

The data alter the near-term calculus for the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee, which next meets in July. Stronger-than-expected job growth typically reduces the likelihood of rate cuts; the May figure lands between recent private forecasts of 140,000 and 200,000.

Financial-market pricing of rate cuts for the second half of 2026 will adjust when trading resumes. Employers in sectors that add workers in response to labor demand now face continued wage pressure, while those in financial activities must absorb the contraction.

This marks the 41st consecutive month in which the unemployment rate has stayed below 5 percent, the longest such stretch since the late 1960s. The BLS first reported a 4.3 percent unemployment rate in April 2025; it has not moved more than 0.2 percentage point in either direction since then.

The report supplies the final major employment reading before the Fed’s June policy meeting concludes. Markets and businesses now incorporate the May numbers into forecasts for second-quarter GDP, corporate earnings, and hiring budgets for the third quarter.