Shutdown leaves U.S. without October jobless data

As a result, the official unemployment rate for October will remain unknown, something the White House already warned about while federal agencies were shut down. The household survey (Current Population Survey) simply could not be carried out in October: during the shutdown, most staff were on unpaid leave and data collection was frozen. There is no way to recreate that survey after the fact, so figures for unemployment and labor force participation for that month will not be published at all.

BLS says that data from the establishment survey (Current Employment Statistics) for October will be released together with the November figures. That combined report is scheduled for December 16.

The gap in the data adds another layer of uncertainty for the Federal Reserve and financial markets. On Thursday, policymakers and investors are due to receive the delayed September jobs report, which also suffered from the pause in government operations. But going into the Fed’s Dec. 9–10 meeting, they still will not have a full picture for October: the latest comprehensive labor market data will land only after the central bank makes its next rate call.

The broader backdrop in the job market is far from upbeat. While official reports were on hold, economists used public Labor Department databases to reconstruct weekly jobless claims. Their estimates suggest that initial claims for the week ended Oct. 11 fell to about 217,000 from 235,000 a week earlier. However, the number of people continuing to collect benefits has hovered around 1.9 million, pointing to slow re‑employment. Research from the Bank of America Institute also shows weaker hiring among small businesses. Taken together, these signals point to a sluggish labor market that is now, at least temporarily, missing a key piece of official data.