Maryland Gains 26,000 Private Jobs Over-the-Year
State Unemployment Rate Drops to 4.2 Percent
BALTIMORE (Sept. 21, 2018) – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) today released state jobs and unemployment data. According to the preliminary survey data, Maryland added 7,900 private jobs in August. Compared with this time last year, private sector employment is up by 26,000 jobs, for an over-the-year increase of 1.2 percent.
Total employment increased in Maryland by 4,600 jobs in August, with gains across several sectors including Leisure and Hospitality, Professional and Business Services, and Trade, Transportation, and Utilities. Since January 2015, total employment in Maryland has increased by more than 107,000 jobs.
Further, the state’s preliminary jobs estimate for July was revised upwards by BLS by 1,200 jobs. This increased July’s gain of 5,300 jobs to a gain of 6,500 jobs last month.
“An amazing shift is happening in the world of workforce development,” said Labor Secretary Kelly M. Schulz. “The unique challenges presented by our healthy economy have engaged industry more actively with the state in the process of building our talent pipeline. Programs like apprenticeship and EARN Maryland – which both leverage our employers’ knowledge and experience to develop a well-trained, responsive workforce – are experiencing tremendous success with extremely high return on investment and participation. With this momentum, we can continue filling the jobs created by our tremendous growth.”
According to the data released today, the Leisure and Hospitality sector posted the highest gains in August with an increase of 2,400 jobs, all within the Accommodation and Food Services subsector. Professional and Business Services increased by 2,400 jobs across the Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (1,500 jobs) and Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services (1,300 jobs) subsectors. Trade, Transportation, and Utilities increased by 2,100 jobs, while Education and Health Services increased by 1,900 jobs.
Mining, Logging, and Construction and Manufacturing also experienced job gains last month, while the Financial Activities, Other Services, and Information sectors experienced declines. Financial Activities reported the greatest decline with 1,300 jobs across the Finance and Insurance (900 jobs) and Real Estate and Rental and Leasing (400 jobs) subsectors.
Maryland’s unemployment rate has decreased to 4.2 percent.
About the Maryland Department of Labor
The Maryland Department of Labor is committed to safeguarding and protecting Marylanders. We're proud to support the economic stability of the state by providing businesses, the workforce, and the consuming public with high-quality, customer-focused regulatory, employment, and training services. For updates and information, follow the Maryland Department of Labor on Twitter (@MD_Labor), Facebook and visit our website.
Note: Data is spidered in on the DLLR website directly from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) using Datazoa and a slight lag may exist as the database is refreshed.
For immediate access to this month's jobs data please go to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) website.
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