AlHijjah 9, 1435, Oct 3, 2014, SPA -- U.S. employers added nearly a quarter-million jobs in September, a burst of hiring that helped drive down the unemployment rate to its lowest level in six years, the government reported Friday. The Labor Department said employers added 248,000 jobs last month, and the unemployment rate fell to 5.9 percent, the lowest since July 2008. The report also showed that employers added 69,000 more jobs in July and August than the government previously had estimated. The results of the most significant measure of the economy's health ahead of November 4 congressional elections showed a stronger labor market than analysts had expected. The number of unemployed people fell in September by 329,000 to 9.3 million. Most of them found jobs last month, but almost 100,000 stopped looking for work. The exodus from the job market lowered the percentage of Americans working or looking for work to 62.7 percent, the lowest proportion since 1978. Average hourly earnings increased a modest 2 percent in September from a year earlier. Before the 2007-2009 Great Recession, wages rose at a much faster pace. The improved job-creation figures come one day after President Barack Obama highlighted his administration's economic achievements. While the president's message of an improving economy has been hurt by persistent declines in family incomes since he took office, the hiring data underscored the gains made in the labor market this year. The economy is the top issue in voters' minds as the November elections approach.
