The federal Bureau of Labor statistics shows Louisiana is putting up record employment numbers with over 2 million estimated employed for February 2023, the eighth highest in the history of the series. Louisiana added more than 6,000 jobs from January to February which Mark Jones with the Louisiana Workforce Commission said is one of the biggest increases in the nation.
“The big number for us looking at the national figures, that was the eighth most among states this month, the eighth highest percentage change over the month among the nation.”
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the state is at 3.6%, up 0.1% from last month but still one of the lowest in series history. Education and Health services saw an increase in 3,400 jobs since January and the leisure and hospitality industry gained 1,200 jobs, and Jones said this is nothing new.
“We’re seeing some strong gains in both education and healthcare. We’ve gained jobs in those fields in 16 of the last 17 months, and we’re seeing a strong gain in in manufacturing.”
Jones said Louisiana has shown gains in manufacturing in 19 of the last 20 months over the past two years and added 400 this February.
New Orleans led the way, adding 2,700 jobs this month especially in the leisure and hospitality industry. Despite having only the eighth largest job market in the state, Jones said Alexandria’s 600 new jobs were second most in the state.
“They’ve added jobs over the years for 23 consecutive months, so Alexandria, a smaller area, but they are consistently growing over these last two years.”
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