State unemployment rate stays at 4.8 percent
Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate for January was 4.8 percent, unchanged from December, according to statistics released Friday by the state Department of Labor & Industry.
That figure is above the U.S. rate of 4.1 percent, which likewise was the same as it was in December. Pennsylvania’s jobless rate is down four-tenths of a percentage point from January 2017. Those statistics are seasonably adjusted.
The Labor & Industry report also showed the state’s labor force was down 4,000 from December to 6,414,000 – a figure that was unchanged the previous four months. A 5,000 decrease in employment accounted for that decline.
Unemployment stayed steady at 310,000. Employment was down 4,000 over the year and unemployment 28,000, according to the report.
Nonfarm jobs statewide dropped 6,300 from December, when Pennsylvania had a record-high 5,987,300. This followed nine consecutive months of gains. The largest supersector decline was 4,600 jobs in education and health services. Leisure and hospitality experienced the biggest gain, 2,800.