5/26/2016 10:00:08 AM
Minnesota employers added 15,600 jobs in April, the most for a single month since September 2013. For the record, Minnesota employers added 12,200 jobs in August 2013 pushing the grand total of jobs in the state over its pre-recessionary peak.
Here’s what’s current: Job growth in Minnesota is up 1.1 percent from a year ago, compared with a 1.9 percent growth rate nationally. Go here for the complete press release.
A section to the website examines the unemployment rate by demographics (race, age and gender) and looks at alternative measures of unemployment.
There are always interesting numbers behind the monthly jobs report that don’t make the headlines: The average workweek of private sector employees edged up in April to 33.7 hours. Private sector average wage rates slipped by 15 cents to $26.90 per hour – but that still stands 92 cents or 3.5% higher than a year ago. There were 17,188 Unemployment claims for benefits in Minnesota.
Minnesota has two standout sectors that are growing faster here than in the US: Manufacturing and education and health care.
After being down over the year for the past two months, April’s manufacturing sector gain was enough to send it back into positive annual growth territory, despite manufacturing nationwide being down over the year for the second straight month. Durable goods manufacturers contributed most of the gains, although food manufacturers also added workers and continued to increase the annual gains over last year’s poor season. (The avian flu may have had some effect.)
Education and health care sustained its annual 3.5% rate of growth for the 3rd consecutive month. Ambulatory care services hit a 7.7% annual gain; notable for being achieved only twice previously (January 2006 and December 2002). Social assistance was down over the past year, by 0.3%, for the first time on record. Services to the elderly and disabled, vocational rehabilitation services, and child day care services are the largest areas of employment in this component.
Although logging and mining was up 100 jobs in April, the sector was down 1,618 jobs in the past year.
Government lost 300 jobs in April and 971 jobs in the past year.
