GAO Flags Risks to the Federal Jobs Report as Survey Response Rates Decline

The federal Jobs Report remains broadly trusted by policymakers, employers, workers and financial markets, but a Government Accountability Office review has identified several risks that could make employment estimates less timely or reliable.

In a report published June 2, 2026, GAO said users generally consider the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ monthly Employment Situation report accurate and useful. At the same time, the agency pointed to declining response rates in both surveys used to produce the report, occasional large revisions, outdated population information and difficulty measuring some alternative work arrangements as data-quality concerns.

GAO’s report, numbered GAO-26-107538, did not conclude that the Jobs Report is invalid or unusable. It also did not attribute the declining response rates to deliberate manipulation or determine that the figures are necessarily biased upward or downward.

How the report is produced

The Jobs Report is based on two nationwide surveys covering the U.S. labor market. The household survey provides information about employment and unemployment among people, while the establishment survey collects information from employers. Together, they form one of the country’s most closely watched economic indicators.

GAO reviewed BLS performance from fiscal years 2020 through 2025. The full report says BLS met its precision and revision goals during that period, although the agency relaxed one goal during the pandemic.

Those findings mean the report continues to serve its central purpose, but they also show why the quality of the underlying survey process matters. Policymakers use the data to assess the economy, employers and workers use it to understand labor-market conditions, and financial markets respond to its monthly release.

Response rates and revisions are central concerns

GAO identified declining response rates in both the household and establishment surveys as a risk. When fewer people or businesses respond, statistical agencies face greater difficulty ensuring that the collected information accurately represents the broader labor market.

The agency did not provide a single national response-rate figure in its summary findings. It also did not conclude that the decline has produced a specific direction of bias in the headline numbers. The effect of future methodology changes on employment estimates remains uncertain.

Stakeholders also told GAO that occasional large revisions can reduce the usefulness of timely employment data. The initial figures are important because they shape decisions soon after release, but later changes can alter the picture of hiring and labor-market conditions.

GAO further cited outdated population information and gaps in measuring alternative work arrangements as risks. The report’s findings do not say that those limitations invalidate current figures; they identify areas where the statistical process could be strengthened.

Oversight gaps and planned improvements

GAO found that BLS was working to add an online response option. The change is intended to provide another way for survey participants to submit information, although the approved findings do not specify when the option will be fully implemented or how much it will improve response rates.

The review also found a gap in regular user and technical feedback. Two advisory committees were eliminated in 2025, and GAO said BLS lacked a plan to address the loss of that feedback structure.

GAO recommended that the secretary of Labor ensure BLS publishes a summary assessment of nonresponse bias for the establishment survey. BLS agreed with the recommendation and said it planned to draw on a new nonresponse-bias study being conducted under contract.

BLS also planned to release data that would allow users to calculate margins of error for almost all Jobs Report data items by the end of fiscal year 2026. Such information would help users better understand the statistical uncertainty surrounding the estimates, rather than treating each published number as exact.

What readers should take from the review

The GAO findings point to a credibility and transparency challenge, not a finding that the monthly report has stopped working. The report remains a continuing national economic series; BLS published the official June 2026 Employment Situation report on July 2, 2026.

The next measurable steps are the planned nonresponse-bias assessment, the online response option and the expansion of margins-of-error data by the end of fiscal year 2026. The impact of those changes on the headline employment estimates will depend on how BLS carries them out and what future analysis shows.

Sources

• Federal Statistics: Stakeholders Said Jobs Report Generally Meets Their Needs, but Opportunities Exist to Improve Data Quality, U.S. Government Accountability Office
• GAO-26-107538 Full Report, U.S. Government Accountability Office
• The Employment Situation — June 2026, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

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