US ad employment fell for the third straight month

Employment in advertising, public relations and related services fell by 1,600 jobs in February, dropping for the third month in a row. Overall U.S. employment rose by 151,000 jobs last month, according to the monthly employment report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That was a bit below expectations, but it showed the labor market continues to hum along at a decent pace. The unemployment rate edged up to 4.1% in February from 4.0% in January. Below, Ad Age Datacenter breaks down the report—by the numbers. Top marketers, brands and agency ventures Ad Age Datacenter’s definitive rankings of the biggest U.S. and global advertisers and agency companies Click here Advertising, PR and related services U.S. employment in the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) classification of advertising, PR and related services declined to 494,100 jobs in February based on seasonally adjusted figures. The ad market lost 1,600 jobs in February following a loss of 1,000 jobs in January. BLS downwardly revised the January figure from a preliminary gain of 300 jobs reported a month ago. The ad market lost jobs in December, January and February, with an average decline of about 1,500 jobs each month, following job increases in September, October and November. Over the past 12 months—March 2024 through February 2025—the ad market registered gains in five months and losses in seven months. After all of those job gyrations, U.S. ad market employment last month stood exactly where it was last March: 494,100 jobs. This BLS jobs bucket includes ad agencies, PR agencies and related services such as media buying, media reps, outdoor advertising, direct mail and other services related to advertising. Ad agencies account for the biggest portion—about 44%—of those jobs. Ad agencies U.S. ad agency employment totaled 218,600 jobs in January on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, a decrease of 1,400 jobs. BLS reports ad agency employment on a one-month lag, so February figures aren’t yet available. But the decrease in advertising, PR and related services employment suggests that ad agency staffing fell last month. U.S. ad agency employment January 2025 vs. previous month: -1,400January 2025 vs. year earlier: -3,100 Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Not seasonally adjusted. Expanded jobs data: AdAge.com/adjobs. Media U.S. employment in the broad BLS classification of media streaming distribution services, social networks and other media networks and content providers increased slightly to 218,900 jobs in January on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, up by 300 jobs from December. Employment in the classification of web search portals and all other information services totaled 156,400 jobs in January on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, an increase of 1,600 jobs for the month. Ad Age Best Places to Work 2025 50 companies doing a standout job See the full list here Unemployment rate The U.S. unemployment rate, based on a separate survey of households, rose a tick to 4.1% in February from 4.0% in January. The unemployment rate has been remarkably steady, hovering in the range of 4.0% to 4.2% since last May. U.S. unemployment rate February 2025: 4.1% Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Seasonally adjusted. Become an All Access subscriber Get access to exclusive resources including Leading National Advertisers, World’s Largest Advertisers, Agency Report, Agency Review Tracker and TV Pricing Report. Click here U.S. employment The nation in February added 151,000 jobs based on seasonally adjusted figures, slightly below economists’ predictions. That increase reflects employment gains in the private sector and a decline of 10,000 jobs in the federal government as President Donald Trump moves to slash U.S. government employment. These figures are based on surveys done in the second week of February, so it is possible the federal job losses will be bigger, based on additional data, when BLS updates the February figures in its next monthly jobs report on April 4. BLS said the economy added 125,000 jobs in January, downwardly revised from the 143,000 jobs reported a month ago. BLS said 323,000 jobs were added in December, upwardly revised from the 307,000 jobs reported a month ago. BLS monthly revisions result from additional reports received from businesses and government agencies since the last published estimates and from the recalculation of seasonal factors. Over the past six months, the average monthly increase was 191,000 jobs. Growth averaged 200,000 jobs over the past three months and 182,000 jobs in the previous three months. February’s increase marked 50 consecutive months of job gains, an uninterrupted winning streak that began in January 2021. The last monthly job loss, a decline of 183,000 jobs, occurred in December 2020, which was the final full month in President Trump’s first term. Month-to-month change in U.S. nonfarm payrolls February 2025 vs. previous month: +151,000 Month/year Jobs increase (decrease) Jan. 2024 119,000 Feb. 2024 222,000 March 2024 246,000 April 2024 118,000 May 2024 193,000 June 2024 87,000 July 2024 88,000 Aug. 2024 71,000 Sep. 2024 240,000 Oct. 2024 44,000 Nov. 2024 261,000 Dec. 2024 323,000 Jan. 2025 125,000 Feb. 2025 151,000 Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Seasonally adjusted.

US ad employment fell for the third straight month

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