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mpc: 8 Uncertainty about labour market prospects might have been affecting US consumer confidence. But there had been a very strong increase of 308,000 in non-farm payrolls in March ­ well above market expectations. This data series was erratic, but the March figure offered some reassurance that employment would expand at the pace necessary to be consistent with the MPC's February projections, and would help to sustain consumer spending. Some of the increase reflected one-off factors such as the end of a grocery workers' strike and a weather-related rise in construction employment, but these probably accounted for only a relatively small share of the total increase. There had also been substantial upward revisions of the payrolls data for January and February. The data were now more in line with the stronger upward trend in the employment data from the household survey over the past twelve months. However, job growth was still muted by the standards of past economic recoveries and monthly increases of around 150,000 had been necessary in the past just to keep the unemployment rate constant.