Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 162,000 in August; unemployment rate holds at 4.1%

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000 in August, while the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.1 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employment grew in food services and drinking places and local government education, but the information industry lost jobs. The labor force participation rate edged up to 61.6 percent in August.