Employment statistics: Women accounted for almost all of August’s salary increases

There’s one group to thank for August’s blockbuster jobs report: women.

Of the 162,000 jobs added that month, women accounted for 158,000, or about 98%, of the 162,000 jobs added that month, according to a CNBC analysis of data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday.

Men accounted for the remaining 4,000 net positions added, meaning their contribution to overall salary increases is nearly 40 times smaller.

The Economic Security Project, a progressive nonprofit group, first flagged the anomaly in Friday’s data.

Laura Ulrich, economic research director at Indeed Hiring Lab, said Friday’s report widened the gap in employment numbers between men and women to an unprecedented level.

“We are in the midst of change,” Ulrich said. “It’s changing before our eyes.”

Friday’s report is the latest sign of how women are gaining momentum in a lackluster job market.

The BLS found that the number of employed women increased by more than 870,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis compared to 12 months ago. Men lost about 1.5 million employed workers during the same period.

Some of the recent growth in women’s performance can be attributed to which sectors are driving workforce expansion.

Health care, considered a driver of labor market growth for more than a year, continued to add positions in August. More than four out of five employees in this industry are women.

The local government and education sectors boomed in August, accounting for 42,000 jobs and around a quarter of total net profits. Women hold nearly three-quarters of positions related to education, training, and libraries.

But Friday’s report also shows recruiting ability in fields such as manufacturing, which are considered male-dominated, Ulrich said.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for women in August was 3.9%, down 0.4 points from the same month last year. The male ratio jumped to 4.4%, the same level as in August 2025.

Thanks in part to the strength of women, overall nonfarm payrolls on Friday exceeded August expectations. The expansion of 162,000 roles was more than three times what economists expected.

Indeed, Heather Long, chief economist at Navy Federal Credit Union, noted in a social media post Friday that monthly data by gender can be volatile. Instead, she said, the focus will be on long-term trends related to gender.

Long said the trend is indicative of “mom sessions,” a term used to describe the phenomenon of mothers with young children quitting their jobs.

Because women tend to earn less than men, a higher share of jobs could mean companies concentrate hiring in lower-paying jobs, Ulrich said. Given that women are more likely to hold multiple jobs, some of the benefits may come from workers stretching themselves, Ulrich said.

“You can look at this and say, ‘Hey, ladies,'” Ulrich said. However, “I don’t think it’s necessarily a positive story for women as a whole.”