The U.S. economy from April last year to March this year created 30 percent fewer jobs than what the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported. The correction, totaling 818,000 jobs, represents the largest downward revision to payrolls since the global financial crisis.
The updated numbers were a part of the Department of Labor’s annual benchmark revisions to the payroll data. The BLS adjusts employment data annually to make the payroll figures more accurate, although it is less timely. Officials incorporate state unemployment insurance tax records and cover almost all U.S. jobs.