Missouri unemployment rate lowers to 10.1 percent
NOTE: Between the April 2020 preliminary and final estimates, some revisions were made to the seasonal adjustment factors for statewide employment and unemployment estimates by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. As a result of these revisions, the April 2020 seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was revised upward from 9.7 percent to 10.2 percent, while there was no revision to the not-seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate. In addition, the Missouri seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for March 2020 was revised downward to 3.9 percent, putting it below the national unemployment rate for that month.
Missouri’s labor market began a rebound in May 2020, following the major job losses in April 2020 from COVID-19 shutdowns. Employment, seasonally adjusted, increased by 32,900 jobs over the month, though still down by 260,600 over the year. Missouri’s smoothed seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased by a tenth of a percentage point in May 2020, decreasing to 10.1 percent from a revised April 2020 rate of 10.2 percent.
However, the May 2020 rate was more than three times higher than the May 2019 rate. The rate had reached a record low of 3.0 percent starting in July 2018, before edging up a tenth of a point in November 2018 and again in February 2018. The rate had remained at 3.2 percent through April 2019 before decreasing by a tenth of a point in May 2019. It then began a slow increase, reaching 3.4 percent in October 2019, where it remained for the remainder of 2019. The rate was steady at 3.5 percent in January and February 2020 before the COVID-19 spike began in March 2020.
To learn more, click here.
Economic Recovery Dashboard
This month Governor Parson announced the launch of a new Economic Recovery Dashboard to help track the state’s economic recovery.
The Show Me Strong Economic Recovery Dashboard tracks metrics across multiple categories impacting businesses, communities and citizens. Data available on the dashboard shows early signs of recovery for Missouri, including falling unemployment claims, improvement in revenue and employee hours worked for small businesses, a relative increase in consumer spending, and upticks in job postings for hard-hit industries.
To learn more about the Economic Recovery Dashboard, click here.
Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development launches Return Strong initiative
The Missouri Department of Higher Education & Workforce Development launched its Return Strong campaign in mid-May to help with economic recovery efforts as part of Gov. Mike Parson’s “Show Me Strong” recovery plan. Return Strong is focused on two main objectives: helping Missourians skill up and get back to work, and safely and responsibly reopening Missouri’s public workforce system. To learn more about the Return Strong initiative, click here.
Job Center staff are committed to helping Missourians find meaningful employment, refresh their resumes, find training opportunities, and understand available benefits. They are recruiting for contact tracers, and other employment opportunities directly supporting Missouri’s COVID-19 response. Displaced workers can learn about opportunities to earn a certificate or industry-recognized credential through short-term training programs offered through Missouri’s higher education institutions. Efforts at Job Centers and through online and phone services are geared toward helping Missourians utilize available benefits and return to the workforce stronger than when they left.
For resources and more information on how MDHEWD is responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, click here.
|
