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Writing for Townhall.com, Antoni highlighted a major gap between the payroll survey and the household survey. While payrolls showed only 50,000 new jobs, the number of people actually employed surged by a much larger margin.
Specifically, Antoni noted that household data showed employment jumping by 232,000 individuals—more than four times the headline figure. That discrepancy, he explained, is not a flaw but a sign of improving job quality.
“There’s an explanation for this difference if we dig further into the report, and it indicates a very positive development in the labor market,” Antoni argued.
The explanation becomes clear when examining how Americans are working. The data shows a sharp decline in people juggling multiple jobs—a trend that often reflects economic stress.
“The number of multiple jobholders plunged by 444,000 last month, the second-largest drop since the government-imposed Covid lockdowns. Simultaneously in December, the number of part-time jobs declined by 740,000 while full-time employment shot up by 890,000,” he added.
Put simply, Americans are moving away from unstable, part-time work and into full-time positions. That’s a major win for families who previously relied on multiple jobs just to stay afloat.
Antoni offered a clear example of how this shift can distort headline job numbers while actually improving workers’ lives.
“Let’s say someone quits three of those part-time jobs and replaces them all with a single full-time one. That’s a net reduction of two payrolls, so it reduces the headline jobs number even though the person is better off. This is very likely the dynamic that was at play last month, hence the number of people employed rose more than four times faster than the number of jobs.”
This marks a stark reversal from the Biden years, when soaring inflation forced millions of Americans to take on second and third jobs just to survive. Under Biden, inflation peaked at 9.1 percent in June 2022—the highest level in four decades—crushing household budgets.
The broader employment trend also reflects a shift toward private-sector strength. The BLS reported that 584,000 jobs were created in 2025, a drop from roughly 2 million in 2024. However, Antoni emphasized that context matters.
“All the net job growth in 2025 came from the productive private sector, while government jobs declined, due entirely to federal layoffs. It’s a positive development, but it drags down the headline jobs number.”
Federal employment alone has fallen sharply, declining by 277,000 positions since January of last year. This rollback follows a massive expansion under Biden, who oversaw nearly a 6 percent increase in the federal workforce, pushing total employment above 3 million in September 2024—the highest level since 1990.
Today, the federal workforce stands at 2.744 million, the lowest figure since late 2014—a sign that Trump’s administration is shrinking bureaucracy while strengthening the private economy.
Perhaps most importantly, American paychecks are finally gaining ground. Unlike the Biden era, when inflation erased wage gains, workers are now seeing real income growth.
Trump highlighted this shift during remarks to the Detroit Economic Club, stating, “After real wages plummeted by $3,000 under Sleepy Joe Biden, real wages are up by $1,300 in less than one year under President Trump.”
For working Americans, the message is clear: fewer side hustles, more full-time jobs, rising real wages, and a leaner federal government. And with Trump’s tax cuts set to take effect in 2026, supporters say the strongest economic gains may still lie ahead.
