The Fact
The Current Employment Statistics payroll survey excludes several categories that the household survey can count as employed, including unincorporated self-employed workers, most agricultural workers, unpaid family workers, and private-household workers. It measures nonfarm wage and salary jobs on establishment payrolls.
What This Means
The headline payroll-jobs number is not a count of every person doing paid work in the country. Its scope is narrower by design.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Comparing Employment from the Household and Payroll Surveys; Monthly Employment Situation Quick Guide. Accessed October 2, 2026. https://www.bls.gov/opub/hom/ces/