White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said on Monday that U.S. job gains could be lower in the coming months due to slower labor force growth and higher productivity, weighing into a debate that is also underway at the Federal Reserve and promises to shape the central bank's coming policy decisions. Monthly payroll employment grew by an average 53,000 positions in November and December, compared to an average gain of 183,000 jobs per month in the 10 years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and far more than that during an employment boom in the later years of the Biden administration.