Tentative positive trend in legal sector jobs

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the legal sector added 2,700 jobs in August.  Together with the 2,300 jobs added in July (revised down from 2,800), it reflects a tentative positive trend in the job market for lawyers.   The AmLaw Daily has the story:

For the second straight month, legal sector employment hit four-figure gains with 2,700 jobs added in August, according to seasonally adjusted preliminary data released Friday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Friday's BLS report included a downward revision of July's employment gains, from 2,800 to 2,300. Regardless, the numbers represent a positive trend for the sector, which has now seen employment grow in both August and July after suffering major losses in each of the previous two months. The industry lost 2,100 jobs in May and another 2,200 positions in June, according to previous BLS reports.

Legal sector employment has increased by 6,300 positions since August 2012 and, with roughly 1.129 million people in total currently holding legal jobs, 2013 has seen the industry reach higher employment totals than it has at any point since 2009.

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(jbl).