Solid April Jobs Report Shows Govt Employment Drops As Private Sector Growth Beats Expectations

The United States economy added more jobs than expected in April, while government positions continued to decline, according to the April jobs report.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released its monthly report on Friday, showing that jobs had increased in April by 177,000, much more than the 133,000 that had been projected by the Dow Jones. At the same time, federal jobs declined by around 9,000 while the healthcare, transportation and warehousing, financial activities, and social assistance industries all saw growth. 

“This is the second month in a row where the jobs report has beat expectations,” said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. “Wages are continuing to rise and labor force participation is increasing. This is exactly what we want to see. More Americans working for higher wages. More winning is on the way!”

The healthcare industry added 51,000 jobs, including 22,000 in hospitals and 21,000 in ambulatory services, while transportation and warehousing increased by 29,000, according to the report. The 177,000 jobs were lower than the 185,000 jobs that were added in March, which also beat job growth expectations. 

Unemployment remained at 4.2%, and the labor force participation rate changed little. This was the first jobs report released after President Donald Trump announced “Liberation Day” tariffs. Most of those tariffs have been lowered to 10% across the board, with a 145% tariff on China.

The markets responded positively to the jobs report, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq all jumping more than 1%.

Responding to the news, the White House’s official “Rapid Response” X account celebrated the job gains made in the private sector and the decline in government employment. According to the White House, more than 95% of the jobs added to the economy under President Donald Trump have come from the private sector, while around 25% of the jobs created during President Joe Biden’s final two years were government jobs.

“Federal employment has already shrank by 26,000 jobs under Trump after ballooning by 139,000 jobs in Biden’s last two years. President Trump is right-sizing government while unleashing private-sector growth,” the account posted.

Trump and his top donor, Elon Musk, have pushed for a variety of cuts across the federal workforce — from the IRS to the State Department — through Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency project. Some of the cuts have come through firings, while other departments have pushed federal employees to accept buyouts to vacate their jobs.

The White House also celebrated the job gains made among native-born Americans during President Trump’s first three months in office.

“Biden relied on government jobs and foreign-born workers. Native-born workers have fueled 97.6% of job growth under President Trump,” the White House posted. “In Biden’s final two years, native-born Americans accounted for only HALF (56.9%) of employment gains.”