"It seems to me that employment gains will be small."

Usually, big employment gains help the stock market because they suggest a healthy economy.

Over all, the employment gains of 340,000, while strong, were down from an even stronger 458,000 advance in March.

Last month, the employment gains, though small, swept across much of the economy.

Only in the last few years of the current recovery has the economy created both large employment gains and wage increases.

After three years of lousy job performance, we should be seeing very big employment gains - and even after last month's report, we're not.

But perhaps we are looking entirely in the wrong place for any significant employment gains in industry.

The steady employment gains in recent months suggest a rough answer.

And a revised figure for May raised that month's employment gains to 234,000.

It found at least modest welfare cost savings and employment gains.