WASHINGTON (NEWSnet/AP) — The nation’s employers slowed hiring in October, adding a modest 150,000 jobs.

Job growth in October, although down sharply from a 297,000 gain in September, was solid enough to suggest companies still want to hire and that the economy remains sturdy.

Employee increase would have been higher in October if not for now-settled United Auto Workers’ strikes.

Friday’s jobs report from the government comes as the Federal Reserve is assessing incoming economic data to determine whether to leave its key interest rate unchanged, as it did this week, or to raise it again in its drive to curb inflation.

The unemployment rate rose in October from 3.8% to 3.9%.

The UAW strikes contributed to an overall loss of 35,000 factory positions in October. Several other sectors posted job gains last month, notably health care, which added 58,000, government agencies (51,000) and construction companies (23,000).

The leisure and hospitality sector, which includes bars, restaurants and hotels, reported only modest job growth. So did professional and business services, a category that includes typically high-paying occupations as accounting, engineering and architecture.

Wage pressure, which had been slowing, eased further in October. Average hourly pay rose 0.2% from September and 4.1% from 12 months earlier. The year-over-year wage increase was the lowest since June 2021; the month-over-month rise was the smallest since February 2022.

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