The U.S. economy added a solid 175,000 jobs in May, but the
unemployment rate rose to 7.6 percent from 7.5 percent. Why did
the unemployment rate go up when employers added more jobs?
Because the government does one survey to learn how many jobs
were created and another survey to determine the unemployment
rate. Those surveys can sometimes produce different results. One
is called the payroll survey. It asks mostly large companies and
government agencies how many people they employed during the
month. This survey produces the number of jobs gained or lost.
In May, the payroll survey showed that companies added 178,000
jobs, and federal, state and local governments shed 3,000. The
other is the household survey. Government workers ask whether
the adults in a household have a job. Those who don't are asked
whether they're looking for one. If they are, they're considered
unemployed. If they aren't, they're not considered part of the
workforce and aren't counted as unemployed. The household survey
produces each mon