Maine’s unemployment charge in March dipped to the bottom level for the reason that begin of the pandemic, pushed by constant month-to-month job progress for the reason that starting of the 12 months that’s almost restored the entire variety of jobs to the pre-pandemic degree.
The state’s jobless charge fell to three.6 %, in comparison with about 4 % the earlier month and nearly even to right away earlier than the pandemic, in line with the month-to-month job report from the Maine Division of Labor. The state added 3,600 jobs, placing the employed workforce at its highest level in two years.
“We’re on an excellent development. Job progress has been sturdy and we’re almost all the way in which again to the extent of jobs we have been at earlier than the pandemic,” stated state labor economist Glenn Mills. Maine had 638,700 jobs in March, simply 1,300 fewer than February 2020. “We aren’t fairly all the way in which again, however we’re getting nearer each month,” Mills stated.
Month-over-month job beneficial properties are driving the unemployment charge down, whilst Maine’s workforce participation charge – the quantity of people that have a job or are actively on the lookout for work – stays stubbornly low, in comparison with the quantity who had a job or have been actively on the lookout for one in early 2020. Employers added greater than 10,000 jobs since January, a constant upward development after greater than a 12 months of stop-and-go job creation.
The final three months signify the strongest interval of job creation in Maine since late spring and summer season 2020, when staff surged again to companies that reopened after lockdown.
However for the following 12 months and a half, job creation rose and fell, consistent with fluctuations in coronavirus circumstances, hospitalizations and deaths. That correlation disappeared this winter, when employers added jobs by the extreme surge from the omicron variant.
Skilled and enterprise companies, retail commerce and healthcare have been the industries displaying the strongest job beneficial properties in March.
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Nevertheless, the leisure and hospitality business, together with resorts, eating places, bars and leisure venues, made up half the job beneficial properties within the first three months of this 12 months. Many companies are nonetheless recovering from huge job losses within the first days of the pandemic and have struggled to draw and preserve staff.
Intense labor competitors in these industries has pushed wages increased than in different elements of the state’s financial system. The typical hourly pay for staff in leisure and hospitality in February was $20.97, a 13 % improve from the 12 months earlier than, the very best charge in comparison with some other non-public sector.
“It has been a really aggressive setting for eating places to maintain their workers, it’s not stunning their wages are rising quickly,” Mills stated.
Whereas the statewide unemployment charge is trending down, the restoration varies broadly throughout Maine.
Three counties – Cumberland, Sagadahoc and Kennebec – had unemployment charges beneath the state common for the month of March. In eight counties, principally within the northern, Down East and western elements of the state, the unemployment charge was increased than the statewide common. Washington County had the very best jobless charge, at 6.5 %, adopted by Somerset and Aroostook counties.
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