President Donald Trump unleashed his fury about weakness in the labour market on Friday, saying without evidence that the data were “rigged” and that he was firing the Senate-confirmed department of labour official responsible for pulling together the numbers each month.

In a long post on social media, Trump said he had directed his team to fire Erika McEntarfer, the commissioner of the Bureau of Labour Statistics, who was confirmed on a bipartisan basis in 2024.

Emily Liddel, an associate commissioner for the bureau, confirmed late on Friday that Dr McEntarfer had been fired and that William Wiatrowski, the deputy commissioner, would serve as acting commissioner.

The President fired Dr McEntarfer after the bureau released monthly jobs data showing surprisingly weak hiring in July and large downward revisions to job growth in the previous two months. Economists widely interpreted the report as evidence that Trump’s policies were beginning to take a toll on the economy, though the President insisted in a subsequent post that the country was “doing GREAT!”

Lori Chavez-DeRemer, the labour secretary, echoed Trump’s concerns about Dr McEntarfer in a post on social media. “So you know what I did?” Trump later told reporters, as he claimed the numbers were “phony.” “I fired her, and you know what? I did the right thing.”

Dr McEntarfer was appointed to her post by President Joseph R. Biden Jr. in 2023 after a long career at the Census Bureau and other agencies, where she served under Presidents of both parties, including Trump. Among the Republicans who voted to confirm her as commissioner was Vice-President J.D. Vance, who was then an Ohio senator.

The firing prompted swift criticism from economists, former government officials and others, who said the removal would further erode trust in government statistics and make it more difficult for policymakers, investors and businesses, who rely on having dependable data about the economy to make decisions. In addition to the monthly jobs numbers, the Bureau of Labour Statistics is responsible for producing data on inflation, wages and other aspects of the economy.

William W. Beach, who led the bureau during Trump’s first term, criticised the move to fire Dr McEntarfer on Friday.

“It’s unfortunate,” he said. “This could set a precedent where bad news on many different fronts is a reason for dismissing a person.”

Beach, who was appointed by Trump in 2019 and remained in the role for the first two years of the Biden administration, said he had never felt pressure to manipulate the data under either President. Even if there were such pressure, he said, there is “no way” the commissioner could interfere in the revisions process.

New York Times News Service