More than 800,000 fewer native-born Americans are employed than last year as job gains among Americans continue to lag behind those of foreign-born workers, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The number of foreign-born workers employed increased by approximately 1.2 million year-over-year in September, while 825,000 fewer native workers were employed, BLS data shows. The large annual difference is in spite of the roughly 920,000 upward employment fluctuation for native-born workers in September compared to August, after a 1,325,000 drop from July to August.
Top-line job growth was stronger than expected in September, with the U.S. adding 254,000 nonfarm payroll jobs, exceeding economist expectations of 150,000.
“Today, we received good news for American workers and families,” the Biden-Harris administration wrote in a press release Friday following the publication of the September jobs report. “With today’s report, we’ve created 16 million jobs, unemployment remains low, and wages are growing faster than prices.”
Real wages have decreased by 1.3% in real terms between the first quarter of 2021 and the second quarter of 2024 as Biden-era inflation continues to dog American wallets. Prices have risen more than 20% since Biden took office in January 2021, with the rate of inflation rising from 1.4% at the conclusion of former President Donald Trump’s administration up to roughly 9% in June 2022.
To combat skyrocketing inflation, the Federal Reserve hiked rates to a 23-year high range of 5.25% and 5.50% in July 2023 before proceeding to hold rates steady until issuing a 0.5% cut in September. The combination of elevated rates and high inflation helped push many Americans into bankruptcy, with delinquent credit card balances reaching their highest level since at least 2012 in the first quarter of 2024.
The Biden-Harris administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Featured Image Credit: The White House
