June 06, 2006 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Unemployment rate in May 2006

Both the number of unemployed persons (7.0 million) and the unemployment rate (4.6 percent) were essentially unchanged in May.

Unemployment rate by demographic group, May 2006
[Chart data—TXT]

In May, the jobless rates for the major worker groups—adult men (4.2 percent), adult women (4.1 percent), teenagers (14.0 percent), whites (4.1 percent), blacks (8.9 percent), and Hispanics (5.0 percent)—showed little or no change over the month.

The data in this report are from the Current Population Survey and are seasonally adjusted. More information can be found in "The Employment Situation: May 2006," (PDF) (TXT) news release USDL 06-942.