American job growth kept a steady pace in September.
The U.S. economy added 156,000 jobs last month, a tick lower than August’s revised job gains, the Labor Department announced Friday.
The unemployment rate rose a tad to 5% from 4.9%. Sometimes that’s a sign that more people are coming back into the job market.
Pay checks are improving at a faster pace for Americans too. Wages grew 2.6% in September compared to a year ago. That’s not stellar wage growth, which is usually above 3%. But it’s better than the 2% growth — or less — seen for years during the recovery.