The unemployment rate remained fixed at 9.6 percent in October, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports, but 151,000 jobs were created over the month, and 874,000 positions have been added since December 2009. The unemployment rate has remained unchanged since May.

The number of unemployed people was measured at 14.8 million, a figure that also registered virtually no change.

The number of people working part-time for economic reasons dropped by 318,000 to 9.2 million. But those considered marginally attached to the work force and discouraged workers both rose. The number of marginally attached workers measured 2.6 million, up from 2.4 million since October 2009. And the ranks of discouraged workers grew by 411,000 people since last October to 1.2 million.

Industries adding jobs included health care, retail trade (particularly car dealerships and electronics stores), food services, and mining. Manufacturing changed little, shedding 7,000 jobs last month. While manufacturers added 134,000 jobs in the first five months of the year, labor rates have remained stagnant since then.