US Job Growth Sluggish through September

Oct. 12, 2021—Employers in the U.S. added fewer than 200,000 jobs in the September, the second month in a row of less-than-stellar job growth nationwide. 

Companies are still struggling to fill "millions of open jobs" according to a report from the Associated Press, and the 194,000 jobs added were the fewest since December 2020. 

Supply chain bottlenecks have also gotten worse over the last few months, meaning manufacturers and retailers both are struggling to keep products stocked. The shortages have also boosted the inflation rate to its highest point in three decades.

A Labor Department report per the AP showed that the unemployment rate was almost down a half a percentage point to 4.8 percent, though that number accounts for both people finding jobs and the fact that around 180,000 fewer people looked for work in September.