Employment expansion continued in 2019, but growth slowed in several industries

Nonfarm employment continued the largest job recovery and expansion in U.S. history in 2019. Although the annual gain was smaller than the year before, private education and health services and leisure and hospitality exhibited accelerations in job growth. Alternatively, employment growth decelerated in construction, manufacturing, and transportation and warehousing. Average hourly earnings rose over the year while average weekly hours declined, leading to little change in average weekly earnings.