Retail Experiences Employment Uptick in April

The U.S. retail sector experienced the third-highest employment jump for April 2026, a period which saw an overall (and unexpected) increase of 115,000 total non-farm jobs. That’s according to the latest, just-released monthly report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which said retail (+22,000 jobs) trailed only health care (+37,000) and transportation/warehousing (+30,000) in job-creation for the month.

“Retail employment increased in warehouse clubs, supercenters and other general merchandise retailers (+18,000) and in building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers (+13,000),” the report noted. “These gains were partially offset by job losses in department stores (-7,000) and in electronics and appliance retailers (-2,000). Retail trade employment had shown little net change over the prior 12 months.”

The two largest job-sector losers for the month were information technology (-13,000) and the federal government (-9000).

The report also said the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.3 percent in April, and the number of unemployed people changed little at 7.4 million. Both measures changed little over the year.

The numbers in the Labor Department report were roughly equivalent to those released earlier this week by ADP Research, which said private sector employment increased by 109,000 jobs in April and pay was up 4.4%  year-over-year.

Click here for more from the Labor Department report.