Minnesota down 3,200 net jobs in June, unemployment ticks up to 2.9%

Minnesota lost 3,200 jobs from in June on a seasonally adjusted basis, and the state’s unemployment rate ticked up one-tenth of a percentage point to 2.9%, the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development said in news release Thursday. The state’s private sector lost 3,300 jobs.

It’s the second month in a row the state has seen a net job loss. In May, the state lost 8,600 jobs, but gained 3,900 jobs in April. Minnesota has added jobs eight of the last 12 months.

The state’s labor force declined by more than 3,100 people, bringing the labor force participation rate down two-tenths of a percentage point to 67.8%. This measures the number of people either working or actively seeking work, and is used to calculate the headline unemployment rate.

“We closely monitor job and labor force growth and we continue to believe that job growth, particularly in certain sectors, is constrained by a lack of available workers with necessary skills,” DEED Commissioner Matt Varilek said in the news release. “That’s why DEED and our agency partners are focused on innovative initiatives to help connect Minnesotans looking for work with in-demand employment.”

The state’s data compare with a national unemployment rate of 4.1% in June, up one-tenth of a percentage point, and a labor force participation rate of 62.6%.

Over the month, areas that gained jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis included Education & Health Services, up 4,500 jobs, and Construction, up 300 jobs.

Losing jobs were Professional & Business Services, down 3,000 jobs, Leisure & Hospitality, down 2,100 jobs, and Manufacturing, down 1,600 jobs.

Wages in Minnesota again outpaced inflation, with average hourly wages for all private sector workers increasing $2.02, or 5.7%, over the year. The Consumer Price Index, a common measure of inflation, rose 3% over the year, meaning wages increased almost twice as fast as inflation.

Among broader measures of unemployment, the broadest, called the U-6, was at 5.7%, up from 5.4% in May, according to DEED. This takes into account those who have voluntarily dropped out of the labor force and are no longer looking for work, along with those marginally employed and those working part-time but seeking full-time work.