WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve’s decision this week to cut rates for the first time in more than a decade was driven, in part, by a recognition that policymakers have a role to play in the fate of American workers.

The United States economy continued its record run of hiring last month, as employers added 164,000 jobs, the Labor Department reported on Friday. The job market has gained about 21.7 million workers since 2010, and the Fed now faces the lowest unemployment rate in nearly 50 years.

Despite the positive momentum, many people have remained on the sidelines or have seen only modest pay increases. By lowering rates, the Fed hoped to protect the economy against potential risks to ensure that it keeps growing. The move could foster a labor market that continues to draw in disadvantaged workers while prodding companies to raise wages.

“The best thing we can do for those people is to sustain the expansion, keep it going,” the Fed’s chair, Jerome H. Powell, said after the move. “That’s one of the overarching goals of this move — and all of our policy moves.”