Hiring slowed in December in a sign the economic recovery was moderating ahead of disruptions from the Omicron variant of Covid-19, though declining unemployment and robust wage growth indicate employers are poised to steadily add jobs this year.
Employers added 199,000 jobs in December, cooling from 249,000 new payrolls in November and 648,000 in October, the Labor Department said Friday. Last month’s payroll gains left the U.S. economy with about 6.4 million more jobs than at the end of 2020—more than in any year on record—but the nation remains 3.6 million jobs short of pre-pandemic levels.