The number of jobs in the for-hire trucking industry crept higher into record high territory in August, although for the second consecutive report most of the month-to-month improvement comes from a downward adjustment to the previously reported total, according to the monthly jobs data from the U.S. Dept. of Labor.
The gain of 700 jobs put the total at 1.4588 million, but that’s actually only 100 more than was originally reported for July. Still, the August total is 5,400 more jobs than the record for trucking set in January 2007. That’s also the fifth monthly gain in a row after the surprise loss of 7,300 jobs in March, which was the first decline in almost two years.
This comes as the broader economy added 173,000 jobs and the unemployment rate fell to 5.1%, the lowest rate since April 2008.
The trucking industry has recovered 225,600 jobs since the low point in the recession, March 2010. Compared to August last year, for-hire trucking has added 39,300jobs, an increase of 2.8%. (See the interactive chart below.)
Collectively, the transportation and warehousing sector added 7,300 jobs in August.
