The number of US temp jobs shrunk by 8,900 in July from June, according to seasonally adjusted data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The increase in June was also revised down from 19,800 to 16,500; May’s increase was revised downward to 8,600 from 17,200.

However, the number of temp jobs was still up 4.53% on a year-over-year basis in July.

The temp penetration rate in July fell to 2.037% from June’s rate of 2.046%. The penetration rate reflects temporary help services jobs as a percent of total US nonfarm employment.

The US overall added 215,000 nonfarm jobs in July. Over the past 12 months, job gains have averaged 246,000 per month. Job gains occurred in retail trade, health care, professional and technical services, and financial activities. Mining employment continued to decline.

Bloomberg reports the increase fell below the median forecast of 96 economists, which called for a 225,000 advance.

“Trend job growth is rock solid,” said Ryan Sweet, a senior economist at Moody’s Analytics Inc., which correctly forecast the increase in payrolls in the Bloomberg survey. “It’s more than sufficient to continue to chip away at the slack that’s left in the job market.”

July’s job growth is lower than the average of the past year, but overall employment growth is holding up well, according to The Conference Board.

“As we expect GDP growth to slightly pick up in the second half of 2015, 200,000+ monthly job gains are possible for the coming months, unless we see a big pickup in productivity,” The Conference Board stated.

The US unemployment rate remained at a seven-year low of 5.3% in July. The college-level unemployment rate, which can serve as a proxy for professional employment, rose in July to 2.6% from 2.5% in June.

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