RJ and Makay

In November, the U.S. Labor Department reported that U.S. employers added 39,000 jobs to their payrolls, marking a significant slowdown from October, when 172,000 jobs were added. November’s job growth fell far below the 150,000 gain that economist surveyed by CNNMoney forecasted.

Although private businesses have continued hiring for the eleventh consecutive month, their numbers fell short of expectations also, with private firms adding only 50,000 jobs to their payrolls in October. Economists had predicted the sector to add 175,000 jobs for the month. Not only that, but 40,000 of the added jobs consisted of temporary help positions, and an additional 19,000 jobs consisted of positions in health care.