The economy lost a net total of 95,000 jobs last month, keeping the unemployment rate unchanged at 9.6 percent, as a wave of government layoffs in September outpaced weak hiring in the private sector.
The monthly Labor Department report is the final one before the November elections and comes at a time when incumbent Democrats are eager to tout an improvement in the jobs situation. While total government jobs fell by 159,000 for the month, private sector companies added just 64,000 jobs.
But these numbers don't necessarily give a complete picture of the job situation for most Americans. We've been asking for your personal jobs report and we want to continue the question: Are you more hopeful or more frustrated about your job situation?