Staffing firms created 10,700 new jobs in August, up 0.4% from July and 4.3% from August 2014, according to seasonally adjusted data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Year-to-year staffing job growth averaged 5.6% over the past 12 months.

Nonseasonally adjusted BLS data, which estimate the actual number of jobs in the economy, indicated that temporary help employment increased 2.1% from July to August. Year-to-year, there were 4.4% more staffing employees in August than in the same month last year.

“Staffing firms across several sectors continue to report challenges in meeting client demand for qualified temporary and permanent workers,” said Richard Wahlquist, president and chief executive officer of the American Staffing Association. “With the percentage of Americans working or looking for work stuck at only 62.6%, the lowest level in nearly four decades, the skills gap challenges confronting businesses today will continue to increase as economic growth continues and more people leave the workforce.”

Total U.S. nonfarm payroll employment increased by 173,000 jobs in August (seasonally adjusted), BLS reported. Incorporating revisions for June and July, the data showed that monthly job gains averaged 221,000 over the past three months, significantly less than the average of 247,000 for the prior 12 months.

The unemployment rate dropped from 5.3% in July to 5.1% in August.