Women’s labor force participation is approaching pre-pandemic levels, but childcare is still limiting some women’s return to paid work.

January’s outsized 517,000 payroll gain was well above expectations and sparked fears of more aggressive rate hikes by the Fed.

Employers added a higher-than-expected 311,000 jobs, while unemployment rose from 3.4% to 3.6%.

The February national employment report, due Friday, is expected to show strong job growth and wage gains.