Why are employment data worse after the US Bureau of Labor Statistics’ major overhaul?

On September 5th, local time, the U.S. Department of Labor released its latest employment data, showing that non-farm payrolls increased by only 22,000 in August, far below market expectations of 75,000. The unemployment rate also reached its highest level in four years. This was the first monthly report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics since Trump replaced its director last month, and the data did not improve with the change. On August 1st, dissatisfied with the Labor Department’s July employment data, Trump announced the dismissal of then-BLS Director Erica McEntuff, accusing her of “manipulating employment data for political purposes.” The data released in September was even worse. Not only did August employment fall short of expectations, but earlier employment data was also revised downward. June’s employment data was revised downward, indicating a loss of 13,000 jobs that month, the first such loss since December 2020. The unemployment rate also continued to rise, reaching its highest level since October 2021. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said: “Today’s jobs report is worse than already low expectations. This sends a glaring red light to the entire country: Donald Trump is killing our economy.” White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett also admitted that the jobs data is “a little disappointing.” Trump seems to have anticipated the current weakness in the labor market. He said this week that the “real numbers” will be released in a year, and that job growth will be “absolutely incredible.” On September 4, he also told reporters: “You are going to see employment numbers like the United States has never seen.”