GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — New data released Friday from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed weaker-than-expected numbers for July, with only 73,000 jobs added. Additionally, monthly totals for May and June were revised down by a combined 258,000 jobs.
Just hours after the jobs report was released, former President Donald Trump ordered the firing of the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In a post on Truth Social, Trump accused Dr. Erika McEntarfer of manipulating the monthly jobs report for "political purposes," claiming she faked the jobs numbers before the election to benefit former Vice President Kamala Harris.
The stock market also tumbled Friday following this latest data and President Trump’s new tariff policies affecting almost every nation, which he announced Thursday night. The Dow dropped 542 points, marking the biggest single-day drop in over a month. The S&P and NASDAQ also recorded their largest single-day losses since May and April, respectively.
With the revisions to May and June, the jobs report indicated the weakest pace of hiring for any three-month period since the pandemic recession in 2020. To gain insight into these developments, Fox 17 spoke with Paul Isley, the associate dean of economics at Grand Valley State University.
Isley noted that inaccuracies or inconsistencies in the numbers are not uncommon and that these kinds of corrections are standard. He explained that the Bureau of Labor Statistics had already warned of delays and inaccuracies due to insufficient responses and staffing.
"We have fewer people to take the surveys. We have businesses that are having to adjust and do things in a very uncertain world, and so their priority isn't answering the survey," Isley said. "So instead of answering it right when they get it, it might come in a month later. And so as that additional information comes in, then the data gets revised."
Isley also attributed the ability to track the numbers accurately to a shift away from traditional, full-time employment towards a more flexible, on-demand model of work. He also noted that tariffs have impacted consumer confidence and contributed to an economic slowdown.
"In reality, we didn't expect to start seeing any effects of tariffs until June or July," Isley said. "It was going to take several months before it started showing up in the data about how it was affecting the economy."
Regarding the state of unemployment and hiring in Michigan, Isley indicated that healthcare, education, and construction sectors are performing better than others, particularly manufacturing.
"So we can see that it depends on what sector you're in. We also know that the weakness that we're seeing in the job market really hasn't been layoffs. So firms haven't really ticked up a lot in layoffs, but they haven't ticked up in hiring either," Isley said. "If you're in a job, it's not so scary right now; if you're out of a job, there's not a lot of activity out there to find that next job."
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Michigan's unemployment rate from June sits at 5.3%, ranking the state 48th out of 51. The only jurisdictions with higher unemployment rates are California, Nevada, and Washington, D.C.
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