Massachusetts Adds 11,400 Jobs in January
Saturday, March 09, 2019
GoLocalWorcester Business Team
Massachusetts added 11,400 jobs in January, while the unemployment rate remained at 3.1 percent for the fourth straight month, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development announced on Friday.
MA’s announcement comes one day after Rhode Island announced the loss of 1,700 jobs in January.
"The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics recently reported that Massachusetts had the highest employment to population gains of any state in 2018. The fact that our labor force grew last year by 109,500 shows that even with such a low unemployment rate, Massachusetts continues to attract additional workers into our labor pool to help grow our economy,” said Labor and Workforce Development Secretary Rosalin Acosta.
MA Adds Jobs
From January of 2018 to January of 2019, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that Massachusetts added 27,200 jobs.
Over the month, the private sector added 11,200 jobs as gains occurred in Leisure and Hospitality; Trade, Transportation, and Utilities; Professional, Scientific, and Business Services; Other Services; Education and Health Services; Financial Activities; Construction; and Other Services.
Unemployment Stays Same
The January unemployment rate was nine-tenths of a percentage point lower than the national rate of 4.0 percent reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The labor force increased by 7,200 from 3,833,200 in December, as 8,400 more residents were employed and 1,200 fewer residents were unemployed over the month.
Over the year, the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped five-tenths of a percentage point.
The state’s labor force participation rate increased one-tenth of a percentage point to 67.9 percent. Compared to January 2018, the labor force participation rate is up 1.1 percentage points.