The White House announced on Thursday (November 13) that the upcoming employment report for October will not include the data on the unemployment rate.
Kevin Hassett, the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, stated in an interview with Fox News on Thursday that “since there was no household survey conducted in October, we will only have half of the employment data report.”
He added, “We will see the employment data, but there will be no unemployment rate data, but this is only for the situation in October.”
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) was originally scheduled to release the October employment report on November 7, but due to the government shutdown, federal employees were forced to take leave, and data collection work came to a halt.
Hassett informed the media at the White House on Thursday that the September employment report, initially planned for release on October 3, may be published next week. The data collection for that report had already been completed before the government shutdown began on October 1.
President Trump signed a short-term funding bill passed by Congress on Wednesday evening (November 12), officially ending the government shutdown. This means that statistical agencies and other government departments are beginning to gradually resume operations. The Bureau of Labor Statistics may soon announce an updated release schedule.
The employment report consists of two surveys: one focuses on wage data from businesses, and the other on the unemployment rate from households. While many businesses retain records and self-report data electronically, they still need to reach out to employees by phone and inquire about their employment status during a specific week in October, making this retrospective survey more challenging.
White House spokesperson Karolin Leavitt remarked on Wednesday that the October employment report and the Consumer Price Index “may never” be released. However, she did not specify whether it pertains to the entire employment report or just a portion of it.