---
title: What Do the Jobs Numbers Actually Mean?
description: A look at the monthly employment reports and what they mean.
authors:
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    url: https://money.com/author/pat-regnier/
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published: '2015-06-05T10:00:05.000Z'
modified: '2015-06-05T10:00:05.000Z'
section: Economy and Politics
tags:
  - Careers
  - Employment
  - firing
  - hiring
  - Jobs
  - The Economy
  - Unemployment
  - Unemployment rate
word_count: 74
canonical: https://money.com/jobs-numbers-explained/
type: Article
source: structured-blocks
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![Screen Shot 2015-06-04 at 6.39.49 PM](https://img.money.com/2015/06/screen-shot-2015-06-04-at-6-39-49-pm.png)

The unemployment rate can often be used as a measure of how tough or easy it may be to get a job at a certain time. That one number, however, paints a picture that's a little too simplistic. The unemployment rate fails to include people who have given up looking for work and those who consider themselves underemployed. To get a clearer picture, look at the employment growth number and the unemployment rate together.

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