Despite the labor market being tighter than last year’s jeans, (it’s okay, give yourself time, we’re coming out of a pandemic afterall), the private sector managed to add 455,000 jobs in March. Without bloating the results (see what we did there?) let’s take a look at how job growth impacts your paycheck.
Here’s Five Fast Facts:
- 💥💥Job Creation was Broader than Your Momma - Are Mom jokes still a thing? Or only Dad jokes? If so – Job Creation was Broader than Your Dad. Nevermind, forget it. We mean lots of jobs were created across lots of different industries. All kinds of different jobs are growing. The service sector added the most jobs (377,000) led by the leisure and hospitality industry, which added 161,000 jobs, and the education/health services industry, which added 72,000 jobs.
- 💪💪Make it Work for You - All in all, nearly 1.5 million jobs were added in the first quarter of 2022. If yours isn’t paying you enough, now is the time to ask for a raise or hit the help wanted ads. Even though we’ve added jobs, we’re still in a tight labor market and that generally produces higher wages.
- 🚩🚩Oh, But Hold Up - Don’t order the caviar just yet, cowboy. A tight labor market also leads to inflation, which is what’s happening now. So while you might be able to demand a higher wage, chances are you’re going to see it eaten up by higher prices. (But still ask for the bag. You deserve a raise!!!)
- 😃😃Increased Job Openings are Good for Paychecks - Overall, the jobs report is good news for wages because wages are predicted to increase by 3.9% this year.
- 🌞🌞What’s the Forecast? Sometimes talk of inflation and recession are enough to put a shift in the energy of the job market. So, let’s keep it real: Analysts think the chances of a recession in 2022 are about 35%. That's the kind of number that you wish was lower (like your golf score.) So let’s stay cautiously optimistic and not sound any alarms.
🔥Bottom line: We added more jobs in a tight labor market. This is a good thing for anyone seeking new opportunities and for those wanting their wages to go up. Keep an eye on inflation but don’t panic. Overall, the economy is not showing signs of recession.
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