Labor Market and Economy Report: A Look at Trends in December 2025

Executive Summary

Job Growth

The U.S. economy added 50,000 jobs in December. For the 12 months ending December, employment grew by just 0.4%.

Unemployment and Labor Force Participation

The unemployment rate fell to 4.4% in December, and the labor force participation rate slightly declined to 62.4%.

Unemployment rates specific to the industries Aston Carter supports were as follows for November: finance and insurance (2.0%), professional and business services (4.1%), hospitals (1.8%), utilities (2.3%), manufacturing (3.4%) and construction (4.4%).

Among skilled labor categories Aston Carter sources talent for, unemployment in business and financial was 3.2%, and office and administrative was 4.3%.

Inflation

The year-over-year inflation rate increased by 2.7% between December 2024 and December 2025, unchanged from the increase in November.

Wage Growth

Average hourly earnings increased by 3.8% for the 12 months ending December. “Real” average hourly earnings (wages adjusted for inflation) increased by 1.1% between December 2024 and December 2025. In other words, average hourly earnings are keeping up with inflation, but consumers may still be feeling the pressure of higher prices.