Is the FIFA World Cup boosting the US job market?

**Andrew Peach** (0:00)
US job numbers up again.

**Michelle Fleury** (0:03)
Employers added 172,000 jobs in May, more than double forecasts.

**Jack Clark** (0:08)
Right now, it's like the AI industry has a gas pedal, but it doesn't have a brake pedal in the car.

**Andrew Peach** (0:13)
It's World Business Report from the BBC World Service. This is Andrew Peach. On the way, we'll ask how many of those new jobs are connected to the World Cup, which starts next week. Also today, as Moscow says the Russian economy is proving resilient in the face of international sanctions, we'll talk to a business owner in St. Petersburg. And almost a year on, Air India crash families are pushing back over payouts.
First, the US economy created 172,000 jobs during May, particularly as pubs, bars and restaurants ramped up hiring ahead of the World Cup, which starts on Thursday. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said the new jobs were primarily in leisure and hospitality, local government and healthcare on the list too. North America business correspondent, Michelle Fleury is in New York.

**Michelle Fleury** (1:09)
A surprisingly strong jobs report has eased concerns that the US economy may be starting to slow down. Many economists had expected rising costs linked to the conflict in the Middle East to weigh on business activity and hiring. Instead, employers added 172,000 jobs in May, more than double forecasts, while the unemployment rate held steady at 4.3 percent.
The strongest gains were in hospitality, healthcare and local government, suggesting the world's largest economy remains resilient despite uncertainty over inflation and energy prices.

**Andrew Peach** (1:44)
Let's hear from two businesses in the US who are gearing up for a summer of football. First, Mark Prinsinger owns the Lion Sports Bar in Philadelphia. Tonya Zubia is the General Manager of the Hotel Crocodile in Seattle. They're both live with us on the programme. Mark, have you been hiring?

**Mark Prinsinger** (2:02)
We have been hiring like crazy. We're expecting the World Cup to be a very large event here in Philadelphia. And being the number one soccer bar in Philly, we have definitely loaded up on extra staff.

**Andrew Peach** (2:13)
So what sort of roles have you been filling?

**Mark Prinsinger** (2:17)
Mostly front of the house. So we've hired a few hosts, we've hired extra bartenders, extra servers, extra bar backs, a lot of customer facing positions.

**Andrew Peach** (2:27)
Okay. And I'm assuming there's no chance that these jobs will continue beyond the football because you're expecting it to be more custom during the tournament and then it will be over.

**Mark Prinsinger** (2:39)
Well, we are expecting a very heavy increase for the World Cup, but there's a lot going on here in Philadelphia over the summer.
We have Major League Baseball's All-Star game here, and it's also the 250th anniversary of the United States. So we expect a lot of people to come to Philadelphia for historic reasons. So we are hoping to hold on to a decent amount of the folks that we're onboarding right now.

**Andrew Peach** (3:02)
And obviously lots of the businesses in Philly and across the country in hospitality, trying to do the same thing, as it's actually been quite hard to find people to fill the jobs you've got.

**Mark Prinsinger** (3:13)
Well, you know, with times being uncertain, I would say that there are a lot more people, especially in the hospitality area, that are available for hiring. So that really wasn't an issue for us.

**Andrew Peach** (3:26)
OK, let me ask you, Tonya, have you been hiring at the hotel that you run in Seattle?

**Tonya Zubia** (3:32)
I did my hiring as I usually do back in April, but I did not hire beyond what I normally do for World Cup. Part of the reason for that is we have a very nice like stay pattern of guests coming through. They're staying for long periods of time, doing a lot of other things in the city. And so it wasn't necessary for us to overstaff for World Cup, but we are also a music venue. And a lot of the people that work in the venue are gig workers, and they have been able to pick up gig work for World Cup. So that's overwhelmingly positive.
We have the benefit of being a small hotel, 17 rooms, so it's an easier operation for us. And yeah, people will be able to stay through the season, and we won't really have job loss because of that.

**Andrew Peach** (4:16)
And I guess that a hotel business isn't just quite as directly affected by the fact that the World Cup is on as a sports bar, obviously, is where Mark is. But you recognize this kind of boost in hospitality by the sound of it, though, in the businesses around you.