The U.S. manufacturing industry shed more workers in August despite policies from President Donald Trump’s administration aimed at bolstering the sector.
The United States lost 12,000 manufacturing jobs for the month, continuing a downward trend since its most recent peak in February 2023, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. Overall, employers added a disappointing 22,000 jobs in August, signaling a slowdown in U.S. hiring.
It will take time to see how tariffs’ impact on the manufacturing labor force plays out. So far this year, the uncertainty around the new trade policies and consumer spending has prompted some businesses to slow hirings.
“There's no good reason for manufacturing to be hiring right now, and there are a lot of good reasons for it to be taking it easy,” said Ron Hetrick, a senior economist at labor market analytics company Lightcast.
Manufacturing job loss isn’t exclusive to the Trump administration. Jobs in the industry – which slid to 12.7 million in August, or about 8% of total nonfarm employment – have dipped dramatically since their peak in 1979 when they accounted for roughly 22% of total employment. While there were gains made after the Great Recession, jobs began trending down again in early 2023.
