State and National Employment and Unemployment
Calendar of scheduled releases
State and National Unemployment Rates
In April, Minnesota’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell one tenth of a percentage point to 5.3 percent. The drop in the unemployment rate was due to a gain in household employment while the number unemployed fell below 160,000 on a seasonally adjusted basis for the first time since June 2008.
The national unemployment rate also dropped one-tenth of one percent to 7.5 percent in April.
|
Unemployment Rates
|
| |
April
2013
|
March
2013
|
April
2012
|
|
Minnesota
|
|
Seasonally Adjusted
|
5.3%
|
5.4%
|
5.6%
|
|
Not Seasonally Adjusted
|
5.4%
|
5.8%
|
5.3%
|
|
U.S.
|
|
Seasonally Adjusted
|
7.5%
|
7.6%
|
8.1%
|
|
Not Seasonally Adjusted
|
7.1%
|
7.6%
|
7.7%
|
Over-the Year Employment Change
Minnesota gained 26,400 jobs over-the-year in April, up 1.0 percent from one year ago with the private sector adding 28,500 jobs, up 1.2 percent. These growth rates have slipped over the last couple of months and are now well below the national growth rates of 1.6 percent for all nonfarm jobs and 2.0 percent for private sector jobs.
Some of the slowing may be due to the effect of federal sequestration on the economy while some is due to the cold snowy weather in April that clearly slowed hiring in seasonally sensitive sectors including Construction, Leisure and Hospitality, and Local Government.
Government (down 2,100 jobs), Construction (down 1,500 jobs) and Manufacturing (down 200 jobs) have slipped below their employment levels of one year ago. All other sectors remain up over the year. Growth leaders include Education and Health Services (up 10,500 jobs), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (up 6,800 jobs), and Professional & Business Services (up 8,600 jobs).
Monthly Employment Change by Sector
Minnesota lost 11,400 jobs in April on a seasonally adjusted basis, down 0.4 percent. Private employers shed 9,400 jobs over the month while Government shed 2,000.
Only two of the 11 sectors added jobs in April, Education and Health Services and Information, both up 600.
Most of the weakness in Trade, Transportation & Utilities was in trucking, although wholesale trade also lost a significant number of jobs. Both of these components can be sensitive to manufacturing activity, which has lost jobs in the last three consecutive months.
Government employment declines were concentrated in the local component, particularly the non-educational part, which may be due to the delayed opening of municipal parks and golf courses this year. However, all three levels of government are down over a year ago with losses totaling 6,600 in the last three months. Federal sequestration is likely playing a role in these job losses.
Losses in Leisure and Hospitality were concentrated in the recreational component, which includes weather-sensitive areas like golf courses and marinas. Losses in the sector might have been larger except that bars and restaurants, particularly full-service restaurants, had a strong month.
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Minnesota Nonfarm Employment
|
| |
April - Seasonally Adjusted
|
|
Minnesota
|
U.S.
|
|
Number of Jobs
Gained or Lost
|
Percent
Change
|
Percent
Change
|
|
Total Nonfarm Employment
|
-11,400
|
-0.4
|
0.1
|
|
Total Private
|
-9,400
|
-0.4
|
0.2
|
|
Mining and Logging
|
0
|
0.0
|
-0.3
|
|
Construction
|
-100
|
-0.1
|
-0.1
|
|
Manufacturing
|
-1,100
|
-0.4
|
0.0
|
|
Trade, Transportation and Utilities
|
-5,700
|
-1.1
|
0.1
|
|
Information
|
600
|
1.1
|
-0.3
|
|
Financial Activities
|
-400
|
-0.2
|
0.1
|
|
Professional and Business Services
|
-500
|
-0.1
|
0.4
|
|
Education and Health Services
|
600
|
0.1
|
0.1
|
|
Leisure and Hospitality
|
-1,900
|
-0.8
|
0.3
|
|
Other Services
|
-900
|
-0.8
|
0.1
|
|
Government
|
-2,000
|
-0.5
|
-0.1
|
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