Key Takeaways From the April Jobs Report

Foreign-born workers tumbled by 410,000 from March to April while employed U.S. individuals surged by 1.04 million, according to the report.

Now Hiring sign at a restaurant in Royal Oak, Mich., on Oct. 12, 2024. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Employment growth beat market estimates in April, even as businesses and consumers worry about President Donald Trump’s tariff plans impacting the U.S. economy.

New jobs surged 177,000 for the month, higher than the consensus forecast of 130,000. While this was down from March’s downwardly adjusted 185,000, the April reading was higher than the three-month average of 155,000.

The unemployment rate was unchanged for the second consecutive month at 4.2 percent.

A deeper dive into the April jobs report will reveal notable trends forming in the labor market.

Here are some key takeaways from the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

American Versus Foreign Workers

Over the last several years, the growth in the gap between employed U.S. and foreign-born workers has widened significantly.

Between October 2019 and March 2025, the number of employed American-born workers decreased by 535,000. Conversely, the number of employed foreign-born workers rocketed by nearly five million in the same span.

According to the Department of Labor, statistics regarding foreign-born workers include both legal and illegal immigrants.

The divergence narrowed in the April jobs report. Foreign-employment levels tumbled by 410,000 from March to April. By comparison, employed U.S. individuals surged by 1.04 million.

More Join the Labor Market

New employment data show that many individuals joined or returned to the labor force in April.

The household portion of the April jobs report—the survey gathers data from households to determine employment status and will remove duplication—showed a 436,000 increase in the number of people employed.

In addition, the labor force participation rate ticked up to 62.6 percent from 62.5 percent in the previous month. The employment-to-population ratio also rose to 60 percent from 59.9 percent in March.

People not in the labor force and resting on the sidelines declined by 343,000 to a three-month low.

With a slowdown in immigration volumes, this year’s pace of employment expansion “is likely enough to keep up with new jobseekers entering into the workforce,” Bill Adams, the chief economist for Comerica Bank, said in a note emailed to The Epoch Times.

“April’s solid jobs report allays some fears of an immediate drag from tariff uncertainty,” Adams said.

Government Payrolls Tumbling

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, government job creation accelerated and accounted for a large share of U.S. employment growth. Between January 2021 and April 2025, the number of employed individuals working for the government soared by more than 2.2 million, representing approximately 15 percent of overall job growth.

The Trump administration, through workforce downsizing and cost-cutting actions recommended by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), is attempting to reverse this trend at the federal level.

Last month, federal headcount decreased by about 10,000, continuing the downward trajectory since February.

The decline in federal employment could be higher than reports suggest. “Employees on paid leave or receiving ongoing severance pay are counted as employed in the establishment survey,” the Bureau of Labor Statistics said in the non-farm payrolls report.

A USAID federal worker with her personal belongings leaves the USAID office in Washington on Feb. 27, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

This week, global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas reported that almost half of the announced job cuts this year have been related to DOGE’s efforts to cut government spending.

In the first four months of 2025, “DOGE Actions” led to 283,172 announced layoffs, and the “DOGE Downstream Impact” contributed to reduction of nearly 7,000 jobs in the education and nonprofit sectors.

Andrew Challenger, the organization’s senior vice president and workplace expert, noted in last month’s report that March “would have otherwise been a fairly quiet month for layoffs.”

Out of Work

Despite an overall solid U.S. labor market, various cracks have been spotted in the employment data.

The number of individuals out of work for 27 weeks or more has steadily risen over the past year.

In April, this measure increased by 179,000 to 1.7 million, the highest level since February 2022. The long-term unemployed now account for nearly a quarter (23.5 percent) of all jobless people.

Permanent job losers—the number of individuals who have been terminated and do not anticipate being recalled—jumped by about 100,000 to 1.915 million, the highest in more than three years.

In addition, the number of marginally attached individuals—people not in the labor force but wanting a job—was flat at 5.7 million. “These individuals were not counted as unemployed because they were not actively looking for work during the 4 weeks preceding the survey or were unavailable to take a job,” the Bureau of Labor Statistics noted.

However, the U-6 unemployment rate dipped for the second straight month to 7.8 percent. This broader unemployment gauge includes discouraged people, marginally attached individuals, and part-time workers for economic reasons.

Fed Policy Expectation Changes

Investors no longer expect the Federal Reserve to restart its easing cycle in June.

According to the CME FedWatch Tool, the futures market is now pricing in a quarter-point interest rate cut at the July Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) policy meeting.

“With the US labor market conditions remaining intact, the Fed can remain a spectator on the sidelines with respect to policy changes as the fallout from [Trump’s] higher tariff regime and shifting trading policy appears to be lagging,” said Charlie Ripley, the senior investment strategist for Allianz Investment Management, in a note emailed to The Epoch Times.

This will likely frustrate the president, as he again urged Fed Chair Jerome Powell to lower rates.

“Just like I said, and we’re only in a transition stage, just getting started!” Trump said in a Truth Social post shortly after the April jobs report.

“Consumers have been waiting for years to see pricing come down. No inflation, the Fed should lower its rate!”

Powell and his colleagues have conveyed to the public that they want to be patient before taking policy action, citing the economy’s strength and the need to wait for greater clarity from the administration’s changes to fiscal, immigration, regulatory, and trade policy.

What’s Next

U.S. stocks cheered the April jobs report, which indicated that the Trump administration’s tariff plans have yet to adversely impact the labor market.

Despite the continued uncertainty surrounding global trade, tariff stress was not found in the jobs arena as employers were still adding to their payrolls.

Jamie Cox, the managing partner for Harris Financial Group, says this is exactly what you want to see if you are engaged in trade endeavors.

“If you are going to embark on a trade war and your economy is consumption based, this is the leverage you want,” Cox said in a note to The Epoch Times.

Last month, Trump unveiled his sweeping tariff plans, which included a universal baseline 10 percent tariff on nearly all U.S. trading partners and higher reciprocal tariffs.

Days later, the president authorized a 90-day pause to allow for trade negotiations. The White House has adjusted the various tariff regimes.

According to Jeffrey Roach, the chief economist for LPL Financial, if the president softens his tariff stance and the labor market holds steady, “the economy could skirt a deep recession,” he told The Epoch Times.

Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer thinks the better-than-expected April jobs report is proof that the United States is entering “the golden age.”

“With President Trump at the helm, I’m telling you, he mentioned to the American people over and over again that the golden age was coming. I will tell you, the golden age is here,” Chavez-DeRmer said in an interview with Fox News’s “Varney & Co.”