Temporary help jobs fell by 15,500 in December from November, but were still up compared to a year ago, according to seasonally adjusted numbers released today by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The year-over-year growth rate fell to 0.78% in December from 2.18% in November.

December’s temporary penetration rate — temporary help services jobs as a percent of total employment — fell to 2.04% from 2.05% in November.

“2016 went out with a bit of a whimper for temporary help as employment declined and the year-over-year growth rate fell back below 1% in December, though the upward revision to November improves the picture somewhat," said Andrew Braswell CCWP, senior research analyst at Staffing Industry Analysts.

The number of temporary jobs gained in November was revised upwards by 7,400.

Total nonfarm jobs rose by 156,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis, down from the gain of 204,000 in November. The unemployment rate edged up to 4.7% in December from 4.6% in November. The college-level unemployment rate — which can serve as a proxy for professional employment — rose to 2.5% from 2.3% in November.

“As expected, the unemployment rate increased slightly in December following a large drop in November. But in a solid job growth environment, the unemployment rate is clearly trending down," The Conference Board stated. “Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings grew by 2.9%, a new record for this expansion. With the labor market tightening faster than pre-election expectations, wages and prices may accelerate, leading the Fed to raise interest rates faster than the market currently expects.”

Bloomberg reports the total nonfarm jobs increase fell short of the median forecast in its survey of economists, which called for an increase of 175,000. Worker shortages may become more frequent in the coming year, which means employers could have to give out bigger wage hikes even as hiring cools. That would buoy consumer spending and underscore the case for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates several more times in 2017, as policy makers deem the situation at or close to full employment.

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