May’s jobs report was dragged down by loss of 22,000 federal workers’ jobs as Doge cut positions

The US economy added 139,000 jobs in May, a slowdown compared with recent months as American businesses cope with uncertainty around Donald Trump’s continuing trade war.

After signs of a strong labor market in April – which was largely seen as resiliency against teetering trade policy from the White House – May saw a drop in new jobs added to the labor market, according to new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The unemployment rate remained steady at 4.2%, unchanged from last month.

May’s jobs report was dragged down by the loss of 22,000 federal workers’ jobs as the Trump administration used the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge) to cut government positions. Since January, 59,000 Federal jobs have been cut.