Limbaugh falsely claims only 66,000 private sector jobs were created in April

Written by Matt Gertz

Published

Rush Limbaugh falsely claimed that an Associated Press story reported that the “real number” of private sector jobs created in April “is 66,000.” In fact, the story noted that private employers added 231,000 positions in April, while the government hired 66,000 temporary census workers.

Rush flubs “real number” of private sector jobs created

Limbaugh: AP says “real number” of private-sector jobs created in April “is 66,000.” On his May 7 program, Limbaugh claimed: “How do we know more people are looking for work? In the AP story, 'jobs up 290,000.' In the private sector, the real number is 66,000, not 290. Jobs up 290,000, jobless rate rises to 9.9 percent. State-controlled AP tries really hard to start off here with great news.”

AP actually reported 231,000 private sector jobs created, 66,000 temporary census jobs. In its May 7 article on the Department of Labor's report on April employment, AP reported:

Employers stepped up job creation in April, expanding payrolls by 290,000, the most in four years. The jobless rate rose to 9.9 percent as people streamed back into the market looking for work.

The government says the hiring of 66,000 temporary government workers to conduct the census helped overall payroll growth last month. However, private employers added a surprisingly strong 231,000 positions last month, also the most since March 2006.