Labor and Industry releases July regional jobs data

The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry recently released regional unemployment data for July.

Greater Philadelphia

Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties are included in the Philadelphia Metropolitan Statistical Area, or MSA, which includes the city of Philadelphia and surrounding counties in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD Metropolitan Statistical Area was unchanged from June at 3.7% in July, Labor & Industry reported Tuesday. July’s figure represented an increase of one-tenth of a percentage point from the same period in 2023, when the rate was 3.6%.

Broken down to the county level, the region experienced mainly steady or slight decreases in unemployment levels in July from June, as well as small increases from July 2023.

Chester County’s unemployment rate was 2.4% in July, down two-tenths of a percentage point from the previous month, and increasing two-tenths of a percentage point from July 2023.

Montgomery County’s rate for July was 2.7%, down one-tenth of a percentage point from June, and up four-tenths of a percentage point from July 2023.

Delaware County’s rate was 3.2% in July, up one-tenth of a percentage point from June, and up four-tenths of a percentage point from July 2023.

Seasonally adjusted total nonfarm jobs in the Philadelphia MSA increased by 5,900 from June to a record high of 3,127,000 in July.

Berks County

Berks, which is included in the Reading MSA, saw a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in July of 3.5%, unchanged from June. The July figure represented an increase of one-tenth of a percentage point from the same period in 2023, when the rate was 3.4%.

Seasonally adjusted total nonfarm jobs in the Reading MSA were essentially unchanged from June at 181,500 in July.

Pennsylvania numbers

Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate remained unchanged in July at 3.4%, according to Labor & Industry — the 10th consecutive month at that level.  The unemployment rate for Pennsylvania was two-tenths of a percentage point above its record low July 2023 level of 3.2%.

Pennsylvania’s total nonfarm jobs were up 12,200 from June to a record high of 6,191,000 in July. This was the 12th consecutive record high for Pennsylvania’s nonfarm jobs count. Compared with the same period in June 2023, total nonfarm jobs were up 105,000, Labor & Industry said.

Around the state

Among Pennsylvania’s 67 counties, Chester County had the lowest July unemployment rate, at 2.4%, tied with Union County.

Montgomery County had the seventh lowest unemployment rate for July at 2.7%, tied with Lancaster and Perry counties.

Delaware County had the 20th lowest July unemployment rate, at 3.2%, tied with Allegheny, Blair, Dauphin, and Washington counties.

Berks County had the 33rd lowest July unemployment rate, at 3.5%, tied with Beaver, Erie, Lehigh, Lycoming, Mifflin and Wyoming counties.

Pennsylvania’s unemployment data for August will be released by the Department of Labor & Industry on Sept. 20, while specific county and municipal data will be released on Oct. 1.