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February, 1987, Vol.
110, No.
2
The employment situation during 1986:
job gains continue, unemployment dips
Moderate employment gains continued in 1986, as the U.S. economy completed its fourth year of expansion following the deep 1981-82 recession. Unemployment declined slightly during the year, repeating the pattern of slow improvement evident in 1985. For all of 1986, the civilian unemployment rate averaged 7.0 percent—down from 7.2 percent in 1985 and 7.5 percent in 1984.
Nearly all of the 1986 employment increase took place in the service-producing sector, with particularly large gains in services, finance, insurance, and real estate. In contrast, manufacturing employment declined, and the number of mining jobs dropped markedly—reflecting reduced activity in oil and gas extraction because of sharply lower crude oil prices. Construction job growth, which had been very strong during the previous 3 years, moderated in 1986.
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