Labor/Employment

Transportation sector gains 9,000 jobs

The transportation sector gained 9,900 jobs in January as the national unemployment rate fell to 6.6 percent, according to statistics released by the Department of Labor on Friday.

The Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said there were 4,562,600 jobs in transportation in January, compared to 4,552,700 in December.

The figure was part of a 113,000 increase in overall jobs in January, the BLS said.

The transportation sector with the highest employment was “couriers and messengers,” which had 572,900 jobs in January, compared to 562,800 in December.

The lowest employment sector was “warehousing and storage,” which lost 5,200 jobs. The category had 718,300 jobs in January, which was down from 723,500 in December.

The airline industry lost 200 jobs in January, going from 453,900 in December to 453,700 last month.

Rail companies lost 900 jobs, going from 233,000 in December to 232,100 last month.

The full January jobs report can be read here.