The U.S. unemployment rate jumped to 6.1 percent in August, its highest level since 2003.
The total number of unemployed Americans rose by 592,000 to 9.4 million in August, and the unemployment rate rose by 0.4 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Over the past year, the unemployment rate rose 1.4 percent. The highest unemployment rate in the past decade was 6.3 percent in June 2003.
The country lost 84,000 non-farm jobs in August. The manufacturing and employment services sectors lost jobs, while mining and health care gained them.
