Massachusetts Unemployment Rate Up Slightly in May
BOSTON — The state’s total unemployment rate rose one-tenth of a percentage point to 16.3% in May following a revision to the April rate of 16.2%, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development announced.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) preliminary job estimates indicate Massachusetts added 58,600 jobs in May. This follows last month’s revised loss of 646,700 jobs. Over the month, the private sector added 65,700 jobs as gains occurred in construction; leisure and hospitality; education and health services; professional, scientific, and business services; trade, transportation, and utilities; other services; manufacturing; and financial activities. Information and government lost jobs over the month.
From May 2019 to May 2020, BLS estimates Massachusetts lost 605,000 jobs. Losses occurred in each of the private sectors, with the largest percentage losses in leisure and hospitality; other services; construction; and trade, transportation, and utilities.
The labor force increased by 123,200 from 3,406,900 in April, as 100,000 more residents were employed and 23,200 more residents were unemployed over the month.
Over the year, the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased by 13.4%.
The state’s labor-force participation rate — the total number of residents 16 or older who worked or were unemployed and actively sought work in the last four weeks — increased to 62.4%. Compared to May 2019, the labor force participation rate is down by 5.1%.
