Some of the numbers in Friday’s report on the February employment situation suggest that the labor market may be softening a bit. To wit: The number of people who basically said they’re stuck in part-time jobs when they’d prefer full-time work went up about 10%.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics actually has six different ways of measuring unemployment, named — memorably — U1 through U6. The official unemployment rate, U3, came in at 4.1%.

“But they also have a broader measure, which includes discouraged workers, marginally attached workers and people who are involuntarily working part time,” said Jeremy Reynolds, a Purdue University sociologist who studies work and organizations.

This measure, U6, rose to 8% in February.

“That’s the highest level that that measure has been at since 2021,” he said.

And there was a big increase in the number of people working part time who wish they could work full time, up by 460,000 people last month, bringing the total to just under 5 million.

“The jump in part time for economic reasons was surprising. It had been creeping up in the last few months, but it really jumped up,” said Lonnie Golden, a professor of economics at Penn State University, Abington.

Some of that, he said, may have to do with a decrease in the number of so-called “discouraged workers,” people who have given up looking for a job. That was down almost 130,000 last month.

“And when they come back into the workforce, indeed, they’re looking either for part-time, which would be voluntary, or maybe full-time opportunities that are not there, so they’re taking part time instead,” he said.

One reason for all the part-time work is the instability in the broader economy.

“People are taking a more cautious approach to looking for a job, and employers are taking a more cautious approach when it comes to hiring and which positions they’re hiring for,” said Thomas Vick with staffing and consulting firm Robert Half.

Because with everything going on, it’s almost impossible to predict what’s ahead for the job market.