March 2026 Jobs Report

The latest BLS jobs report is here — and Labor Finders CEO Jeffrey Burnett is breaking down the key takeaways.

From hiring trends to workforce challenges, Jeffrey shares insight into what February’s numbers mean for businesses, job seekers, and the economy ahead.

Watch the full video and stay informed on the latest employment trends.

How many jobs were added to the economy? 

For the month of February, nonfarm payroll employment decreased by 92,000 jobs. This is a significant decrease from the prior month in January. Now the two prior months for December and January reflected a decrease of 69,000 jobs from what was originally reported.

Overall, this month's jobs data was significantly below expectations.

What is this month's unemployment rate?

The unemployment rate is at 4.4% in February. This is a small increase from the prior month.

What is the status of job openings?

 Job openings and new hires continue to be at very low levels. The number of job openings is at its lowest level since mid 2020. We are in a prolonged low hire, low fire environment at this time.

What is happening with inflation?

 The Fed target rate for inflation is at 2% and the inflation rate over the last 12 months was 2.4% for all goods and services. This is a decline from the prior months. The inflation rate for all of 2025 was 2.7%

What is happening with interest rates?

 The Fed has seven meetings left this year and in January they declined to make a further interest rate reduction. So the Fed continues to balance inflation and interest rates with the labor market.

How are the tariffs and other administration policies affecting the job market?

The Supreme Court recently said that the president exceeded his authority in imposing tariffs and has an invalidated tariffs, so this should help businesses remove uncertainty in making decisions. The effects of the Middle East conflict did not affect this month's job data.

What is the status of the GDP?

The GDP increased by 4.4% in the third quarter and increased by 1.4% in the fourth quarter of 2025. An increase in consumer spending and exports offset by a decrease in imports is driving this change.

What industries are adding jobs this month?

Well, most industries had a decline this month because we had a loss of 92,000 jobs for the month. Healthcare lost 28,000 jobs, reflecting strike activity. Information -11,000 jobs, transportation and warehousing -11,000 jobs, social assistance -9,000 jobs and the federal government lost 10,000 jobs this month.