State Jobless Rate Creeps Upward in July
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio’s unemployment rate rose to 5.4% in July, up from 5.2% in June.
The state’s nonagricultural wage and salary employment increased by 19,200 over June to 5,340,900 last month, according to information released today by the Department of Job and Family Services.
The number of unemployed workers in Ohio in July was 301,000, up from 291,000 in June. In the past 12 months, the number of unemployed has decreased by 235,000 from 536,000.
Year over year, the July unemployment rate decreased from 9.3% for the same month in 2020, when the pandemic was peaking.
Nationally, the unemployment rate for July was 5.4%, down from 5.9% in June, and down from 10.2% in July 2020.
The labor force participation rate in Ohio for July was 60.5%, up from 60.2% in June and down from 62.0% in July 2020. During the same period, the national labor force participation rate was 61.7%, up from 61.6% last month and up from 61.5% one year ago.
Ohio employment in goods-producing industries, at 893,100, increased 2,800 over the month with gains in manufacturing (+2,100) and construction (+700). Mining and logging did not change over the month. The private service-providing sector, at 3,694,500, increased 18,500 as gains in leisure and hospitality (+7,900); professional and business services (+3,900); trade, transportation, and utilities (+3,800); educational and health services (+2,900); information (+500); and other services (+500) exceeded losses in financial activities (-1,000). Government employment, at 753,300, decreased 2,100 as losses in state (-1,400) and local (-1,000) government outpaced gains in federal government (+300).
From July 2020 to July 2021, nonagricultural wage and salary employment increased 147,700. Employment in goods-producing industries increased 22,200. Manufacturing added 13,300 jobs in durable goods (+7,300) and nondurable goods (+6,000). Construction added 9,000 jobs and mining and logging employment decreased 100. Employment in the private service-providing sector increased 121,600 with gains in leisure and hospitality (+47,600); trade, transportation, and utilities (+26,300); professional and business services (+21,300); educational and health services (+16,300); financial activities (+4,300); other services (+3,200); and information (+2,600). Government employment increased 3,900 as gains in local government (+15,500) surpassed losses in state (-10,000) and federal (-1,600) government.
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.
