by Nick Dobbins
July 2015
Monthly analysis is based on seasonally adjusted employment data.
Yearly analysis is based on unadjusted employment data.*
Minnesota added 2,900 jobs (0.1 percent) in June on a seasonally adjusted basis. Growth was largely driven by two supersectors. Construction added 2,600 jobs (2.4 percent) for the month, and Educational and Health Services added 3,200 (0.6 percent). Fluctuations were minor elsewhere, as every other supersector added or lost fewer than 1,000 jobs and none saw more than a 0.9 percent change in employment. Annually, the state added 41,602 jobs (1.5 percent) over June 2014. Three supersectors added over 10,000 jobs. Trade, Transportation, and Utilities was up 10,579 or 2 percent, Professional and Business Services was up 10,892 or 3.1 percent, and Educational and Health Services was up 11,529 or 2.3 percent. Information (down 251 or 0.5 percent) and Other Services (down 775 or 0.7 percent) joined Government (down 2,031, 0.5 percent) and Mining and Logging (down 197, 2.7 percent) as the only supersectors to shed employment over the year.
Employment in Mining and Logging was flat in June, showing no change over May's estimate of 6,900 jobs. For the year, Mining and Logging was down by 197 jobs (2.7 percent} from June 2014, although this was a slight improvement on the over-the-year change from May 2014 to May 2015.
Employment in Construction grew sharply in June as the supersector added 2,600 jobs (2.4 percent) over May estimates, which were adjusted downward to show a loss of 100 in the previous month. Employment in Construction remained up annually as the group added 1,103 jobs (0.9 percent). Construction of Buildings (up 794 or 3 percent) and Specialty Trade Contractors (up 1,109 or 1.5 percent) led the growth while Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction lost 800 jobs (4.1 percent).
Manufacturing employment dropped again in June, down 800 jobs (0.3 percent). The losses were contained in Non-Durable Goods Manufacturing (down 800 or 0.7 percent) as employment in Durable Goods Manufacturing held steady. The supersector has shed jobs in four of the first six months of 2015. Employment in Manufacturing remains up on the year, however, adding 2,841 jobs (0.9 percent) over June 2014. While Durable Goods is up 3,899 jobs (1.9 percent), Non-Durable Goods has lost 1,058 jobs (0.9 percent), thanks in large part to a decline of 1,636 jobs (4.9 percent) in Paper Manufacturing and Printing and Related Support Activities.
Employment in Trade, Transportation, and Utilities dipped slightly in June as the supersector lost 600 jobs (0.1 percent). This decline came on the heels of four straight months with seasonally adjusted gains greater than 1,000 jobs. It was spread among component sectors, as Wholesale Trade, Retail Trade, and Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities each lost between 100 and 400 jobs. Job growth in the supersector remained strong annually, with 10,579 (2 percent) more jobs than in June of 2014. Each of the three component sectors added employment, with Retail Trade showing the most growth, up 7,769 (2.7 percent). Wholesale Trade added 1,274 (1 percent), and Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities pitched in with 1,536 (1.6 percent).
Information employers lost 500 jobs (0.9 percent) in June as the supersector continued its recent fluctuations. After three straight months of annual growth, the supersector also found itself in the red again by that measure, having lost 251 jobs (0.5 percent) since June of 2014. Once again, losses in the published component groups, Publishing Industries (except Internet) and Telecommunications (down 750 and 154 jobs, respectively) far outstripped losses in the larger industry group, suggesting growth in the unpublished industries, which include Broadcasting (except Internet), Data Processing, Hosting, and Related Services, and Other Information Services.
Employment in Financial Activities increased by 100 jobs (0.1 percent) in June. The addition of 300 jobs (0.8 percent) to Real Estate and Rental and Leasing trumped the loss of 200 jobs (0.1 percent) in Finance and Insurance. Annually, the supersector added 599 jobs (0.3 percent), but the roles of the component sectors were flipped, with Finance and Insurance adding 1,468 jobs (1 percent) on the strength of an additional 2,149 jobs (3.3 percent) in Insurance Carriers and Related Activities. This overcame the loss of 869 jobs (2.2 percent) in Real Estate and Rental and Leasing.
Professional and Business Services added 200 jobs (0.1 percent) in June, potentially leveling off somewhat after a chaotic start of the year that saw monthly growth of 5,100 and 3,400 and losses of 3,200 and 3,800 jobs. Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services was flat in June while Management of Companies and Enterprises added 500 jobs (0.7 percent), and Administration and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services lost 300 (0.2 percent). For the year, the supersector added 10,892 jobs (3.1 percent), making it among the fastest-growing industry groups in the state. Most of that growth came from Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services, which added 9,017 jobs (6.6 percent) over June 2014 estimates.
Educational and Health Services employment had a strong month of growth in June, adding 3,200 jobs (0.6 percent) and giving it more new jobs than any other supersector in the state. The growth was split evenly between Educational Services and Health Care and Social Assistance, with each component sector adding 1,600 jobs (2.4 and 0.4 percent, respectively). The story is much the same annually, with the supersector adding 11,529 jobs (2.3 percent), once again the largest total growth in the state. Educational Services added 2,996 jobs (5 percent) while Health Care and Social Assistance added 8,533 (2 percent). The component sector to show the largest relative annual growth was Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools, which added 2,824 jobs or 12.6 percent over June 2014.
Leisure and Hospitality employment was off by 400 jobs (0.2 percent), although that small fluctuation belies the larger changes in its component sectors, as growth of 1,300 jobs (3.1 percent) in Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation was erased by a loss of 1,700 jobs (0.8 percent) in Accommodation and Food Services. Annually, the employment picture remains positive, with 7,313 (2.7 percent) more jobs than in 2014. Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation led the way in both relative and actual growth, up 4,333 jobs or 9.3 percent.
Other Services shed 300 jobs (0.3 percent) in June. It also moved into the red for its annual employment last month, down 775 jobs (0.7 percent) from June 2014. The annual loss is in large part from a steep drop of 1,230 (1.9 percent) in Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations.
Government employment was down 600 (0.1 percent) in June, thanks entirely to a loss of 1,800 jobs (0.6 percent) in Local Government. Employment remains down annually as well, with 2,031 (0.5 percent) fewer jobs than in 2014. Most of these annual losses came from education employment, with State Government Educational Services down 2,183 jobs (3.6 percent) and Local Government Educational Services down 1,669 (1.2 percent), both of which overcame gains in the non-education aspects of the State and Local sectors.
| Seasonally Adjusted Nonfarm Employment (in thousands) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Industry | Jun-15 | May-15 | Apr-15 |
| Total Nonfarm | 2,854.5 | 2,851.6 | 2,852.1 |
| Goods-Producing excl. Ag. | 431.4 | 429.6 | 431.9 |
| Mining and Logging | 6.9 | 6.9 | 7.2 |
| Construction | 110.5 | 107.9 | 108.0 |
| Manufacturing | 314.0 | 314.8 | 316.7 |
| Service-Providing | 2,423.1 | 2,422.0 | 2,420.2 |
| Trade, Transportation, and Utilities | 528.5 | 529.1 | 523.3 |
| Information | 52.5 | 53.0 | 52.7 |
| Financial Activities | 179.9 | 179.8 | 178.6 |
| Professional and Business Services | 359.4 | 359.2 | 363.0 |
| Educational and Health Services | 509.7 | 506.5 | 508.3 |
| Leisure and Hospitality | 261.0 | 261.4 | 261.8 |
| Government | 417.8 | 418.4 | 418.1 |
| Other Services | 114.3 | 114.6 | 114.4 |
| Source: Department of Employment and Economic Development, Current Employment Statistics, 2015. | |||
* Over-the-year data are not seasonally adjusted because of small changes in seasonal adjustment factors from year to year. Also, there is no seasonality in over-the-year changes.
