In this Thursday, April 11, 2013 photo, people wait in line before the Dr. King Career Fair at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center in Albany, N.Y. U.S. employers added 165,000 jobs in April, and hiring was much stronger in the previous two months than first thought, the Labor Department reports, Friday, May 3, 2013. The gains trimmed the unemployment rate to a four-year low of 7.5 percent. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)
Solid job gains in April ease fears about economy
In this Thursday, April 11, 2013 photo, people wait in line before the Dr. King Career Fair at the Empire State Plaza Convention Center in Albany, N.Y. U.S. employers added 165,000 jobs in April, and hiring was much stronger in the previous two months than first thought, the Labor Department reports, Friday, May 3, 2013. The gains trimmed the unemployment rate to a four-year low of 7.5 percent. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)
By CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER
AP Economics Writer /
May 3, 2013
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In April, more Americans said they had part-time jobs even though they wanted full-time work. That figure rose 278,000 to 7.9 million, reversing a steep drop the previous month.
Some economists worry that restaurants, retailers and other companies are hiring more part-timers in preparation for the start of health care reform. Companies with more than 50 full-time employees in 2013 will be required to provide health insurance to their full-time staff next year.
The revisions to the March and February figures were unusually large. Retailers, restaurants and hotels added 48,000 more jobs in February than previously reported. They accounted for three-quarters of that month’s revision.
The government revises each month’s job totals twice in the following two months. The revisions occur because many companies in the survey submit their responses late.
Friday’s report said the number of people who have been unemployed for more than six months dropped 258,000 to 4.4 million. Over the past year, the number of long-term unemployed has declined by 687,000.
Some analysts cautioned that April’s job gains don’t necessarily point to faster hiring ahead.
‘‘There is little sign in these data to suggest that a marked acceleration in monthly job creation in the months ahead is in the cards,’’ said Scott Anderson, chief economist at Bank of the West.
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