Regional unemployment data remained mostly steady in December

The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry this week released regional unemployment data for December.

Greater Philadelphia

Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties are included in the Philadelphia Metropolitan Statistical Area, or MSA, which includes the city of Philadelphia and surrounding counties in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington MSA held steady from November at 3.7% in December, Labor & Industry reported Tuesday. The MSA’s unemployment rate for December 2022 was 4%.

Broken down to the county level, the region experienced slight decreases in the unemployment rates in December from November.

Chester County’s unemployment rate was 2.7% in December, down one-tenth of a percentage point from November, and down three-tenths of a percentage point from December 2022.

Montgomery County’s rate for December was 2.8%, down one-tenth of a percentage point from November, and down two-tenths of a percentage point from December 2022.

Delaware County’s rate was 3.2% in December, down one-tenth of a percentage point from November, and down six-tenths of a percentage point from December 2022.

Seasonally adjusted total nonfarm jobs in the Philadelphia MSA increased 4,000 from November to 3,135,300 in December — its 19th consecutive record high.

Berks County

Berks, which is included in the Reading MSA, saw a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for December of 3.7%, unchanged from November. December’s figure represented a decline of six-tenths of a percentage point from the same period in 2022, when the rate was 4.3%.

Seasonally adjusted total nonfarm jobs in the Reading MSA were unchanged from November at 180,200 in December.

Pennsylvania numbers

Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was up one-tenth of a percentage point from November to 3.5% in December, according to Labor & Industry. The unemployment rate for Pennsylvania was eight-tenths of a percentage point below its December 2022 level of 4.3%.

Pennsylvania’s total nonfarm jobs were up 6,200 over the month to a record high of 6,182,700. This was the 11th month in 2023 to set a record high, Labor & Industry said.

Around the state

Among Pennsylvania’s 67 counties, Chester County had the second lowest December unemployment rate, tied with Adams and Centre counties.

Montgomery County had the fifth lowest unemployment rate for December, tied with Cumberland and Lancaster counties.

Delaware County was tied with Allegheny, Dauphin and Fulton counties for 14th lowest unemployment rate in December.

Berks County had the 36th lowest December unemployment rate, tied with Greene, Lackawanna, Lehigh, Warren and Wyoming counties.

Pennsylvania’s unemployment data for January will be released by the Department of Labor & Industry on March 8, while specific county and municipal data will be released on March 14.