(Bloomberg) -- U.S. women made a strong comeback to the labor force in March.
The labor-force participation rate for so-called prime age women, those ages 25 to 54, jumped to 76.5%, the highest level since February 2020, according the jobs report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Friday. The rate for men of the same age declined slightly after a big jump in the prior month.
The U.S. has been lagging peer countries in the jobs recovery for women, hindered by a lack of affordable childcare and elder care that's prevented many from re-entering the workforce.
Many of the sectors that saw a rebound in payrolls in March have a large share of women, including leisure and hospitality, which accounted for a quarter of total gains. Professional and business services, retail trade and education and health services also posted solid advances.
The Black unemployment rate fell to a fresh pandemic low, tightening for the third month in a row to 6.2%, the March data also show. It was led by men, whose jobless rate of 5.6% is now below pre-Covid levels.
Even so, the jobless rate for Black Americans is still well above the national average, which fell to 3.6% last month.
Read More: U.S. Hiring Stays Robust as Jobless Rate Falls, Wages Pick Up
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