The September jobs report delivered a sharp disappointment: the US economy added just 29,000 jobs last month, far below the roughly 84,000–90,000 economists had expected, while the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.2 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. Top Democrats, led by Senator Elizabeth Warren, seized on the figures to declare President Donald Trump’s economic agenda a failure — one month before the midterm elections. Read the same story on Watan News’ main site.
KEY FACTS: September jobs report
- Jobs added: 29,000 in September, down from a revised 133,000 in August.
- Expectations: economists had forecast roughly 84,000–90,000 new jobs.
- Unemployment: rose to 4.2 percent from 4.1 percent in August.
- Revisions: July and August payrolls were revised down by a combined 60,000 jobs.
- Wages: average hourly earnings rose 3.0 percent from a year earlier — the smallest annual gain since May 2021.
- Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, released Friday, October 2, 2026 — the last jobs report before the November 3 midterms.
Weak hiring across the board
The September figures show a labor market losing momentum. Health care added 17,000 jobs, construction 11,000 and manufacturing 9,000, while financial services shed 7,000 positions. Employment in leisure and hospitality, social assistance and professional services changed little. A separate ADP report released September 30 estimated private employers added 90,000 jobs — still consistent with a clear slowdown.
Economists described the report as weak and mediocre. The cooling comes amid trade wars, persistent inflation, high interest rates and a conflict with Iran that has driven energy prices higher, according to the Associated Press.
September jobs report sparks Democratic backlash
Senator Elizabeth Warren, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, said Trump’s economy has averaged only 33,000 jobs a month since January 2025 — far below the 120,000 monthly average she cited for 2024 — and asserted that real wages have fallen 0.7 percent since the current administration took office. She attributed the wage stagnation to what she called the administration’s “failed agenda” contributing to rising prices.
Warren’s office has made the labor market a running theme: after July’s data she issued a similar statement, and a Senate report from her office says wage growth has slowed from 4 to 3.5 percent while inflation is now outpacing wage growth. The New York Times reported in mid-August that real wages had fallen for the fourth straight month in July.
The US Capitol at dusk. Senate Democrats including Elizabeth Warren and Chuck Schumer have seized on the weak September jobs report to attack President Trump’s economic agenda ahead of the midterms. – Photo: Watan News
Schumer calls the economy “disastrous”
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer joined Warren in criticizing the numbers, describing the economy under Trump as “disastrous” and pointing to the financial pressure on American families from multiple directions. Democrats are framing the figures as evidence of a cost-of-living crisis — an argument they plan to carry into the final month of the midterm campaign.
Midterms one month away
The timing amplifies the political stakes. Friday’s release is the last jobs report before the November 3 midterm elections, which will decide whether Trump’s Republicans keep full control of Congress. A Thursday AP-NORC poll found that only 17 percent of US adults approve of Trump’s handling of the cost of living, and just 26 percent approve of his handling of the economy overall — a new low. Consumer confidence has dropped to its lowest level in more than a decade, according to the Conference Board.
Workers on an American factory assembly line. Manufacturing added 9,000 jobs in September, while financial services shed 7,000 and most other industries showed little change. – Photo: Watan News
What the White House says
The administration has pushed back on the criticism. White House spokesman Kush Desai pointed to continued private-sector job growth and “booming investments,” while acknowledging temporary disruptions linked to the Iran conflict. Markets took the weak report in stride: futures for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose, while the yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 5.17 percent from 5.24 percent a day earlier — a sign investors now expect a slower pace of interest-rate moves. Read the Associated Press’s full coverage of the September jobs report.
Conclusion
The September jobs report has handed Democrats a potent campaign weapon: 29,000 new jobs against expectations of roughly three times that, unemployment edging up to 4.2 percent, and wage growth at its slowest in more than five years. Warren and Schumer are using the numbers to argue that Trump’s economic agenda is failing ordinary Americans.
Whether voters agree will be tested on November 3. With the cost of living dominating the campaign and no further jobs data due before election day, Friday’s report may be the defining economic snapshot of the midterm race.
