The U.S. economy added just 73,000 jobs in July, marking the third consecutive month of sluggish growth, according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“May-June-July is the weakest 3-month period of job growth since COVID. If you throw out 2020, it’s the weakest 3-month period since 2010 and the aftermath of the Great Recession,” Women Forward wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Call it the #Trump effect. #TrumpTariffs”
The national unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.2%, while the District of Columbia and the surrounding metropolitan region saw job gains in the private sector but a noticeable uptick in unemployment.
In the Washington, D.C.-Maryland Metropolitan Division, the unemployment rate climbed to 5% in June, a half-point increase from May and higher than the 4.4% recorded a year earlier, according to the D.C. Department of Employment Services. The region’s labor force stood at 1,027,400, with 976,200 employed and 51,200 unemployed.
The rise in the local jobless rate comes despite the addition of 4,300 jobs in the D.C. metro area, driven entirely by a 5,300-job increase in the private sector. The public sector shed 1,000 jobs over the month, with federal employment declining by 400. Over the past year, the region gained 3,700 jobs overall, though the federal government lost 7,300 jobs during the same period.
Nationally, unemployment rates across demographic groups remained largely unchanged. Black workers continued to face an elevated unemployment rate at 7.2%—nearly double the rate for white workers (3.7%). Hispanic workers registered a 5% percent unemployment rate, while Asian workers came in at 3.9%.
The labor force participation rate nationwide stood at 62.2 % in July, reflecting a 0.5 percentage point decline over the past year. The employment-population ratio held at 59.6%, also down slightly from a year earlier.
Long-term unemployment rose significantly, with 1.8 million people unemployed for 27 weeks or more, an increase of 179,000 over the month. Additionally, new entrants to the job market surged by 275,000 to 985,000.
Health care led national job growth in July, adding 55,000 positions, including 34,000 in ambulatory services and 16,000 in hospitals. Social assistance added 18,000 jobs, primarily in individual and family services. The federal government, in contrast, lost 12,000 jobs nationwide in July and is down 84,000 since its peak in January.
Average hourly earnings for private non-farm employees rose by 12 cents to $36.44 in July, a 3.9% year-over-year increase. Production and nonsupervisory workers saw wages increase by 8 cents to $31.34. The average workweek edged up to 34.3 hours.
However, revisions to previous job reports painted a weaker picture of job growth than initially believed. 125,000 jobs revised May’s employment gain to just 19,000, and June’s gain was lowered by 133,000 to 14,000—reducing the combined two-month total by 258,000 jobs.
In the broader Washington Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes parts of Virginia and Maryland, the unemployment rate rose to 4% percent. The surrounding suburban ring had an unemployment rate of 3.7%.
The next national employment report, covering August 2025, will be released on Friday, Sept. 5.
Some social media users warn that the way numbers look, the economy could be in a lot of trouble.“In 2017, Trump inherited a growing, and fully recovered economy from Obama. He tanked it in four years,” social media user We The People wrote on X. “Biden gave him an economy that was still recovering from the damage Trump caused. Now, with an abysmal May and June (and July) job growth, it looks like he’s at it again.”
