Going against conventional wisdom, there were only two instances in which payrolls declined at the start of the recession (those
Recession Nonfarm payrolls (monthly change)
Month of recession start
2020 +273k
2007 - 2009 +106k
2001 -43k
1990 - 1991 -33k
1981 - 1982 +111k
1980 +128k
1973 - 1975 +313k
1969 - 1970 +155k
1960 - 1961 +359k
1957 - 1958 +5k
1953 - 1954 +17k
Disclosure Title
Source
Disclosure

Source: Charles Schwab, Bloomberg, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).