Before COVID-19 measures began, Nevada job growth in February fell below national average
Submitted by Jeff Munson on Thu, 03/19/2020 - 4:48pm
CARSON CITY — According to the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation’s February 2020 economic report, employment in Nevada is down 1,000 jobs over the month but up 18,300 over the year, a growth rate of 1.3 percent. This marks the first time since July 2012 that Nevada has grown at a slower rate than the national average.
The state’s unemployment rate is 3.6 percent this month, unchanged from January and down half a percentage point when compared to last February.
“With rapid changes taking place in both our state and national economies, it is important to note that our employment and unemployment data is measured as of the week that includes the 12th day of each month,” said David Schmidt, Chief Economist for DETR. “These measures reflect our economic situation as of the middle of February, before COVID-19 had any significant effect on employment and unemployment in Nevada.”
DETR’s report also notes that Nevada’s Unemployment Insurance (UI) increased by a little more than 500 claims, or 5.7 percent over the year. The 12-month average level of initial claims continues to trend below 10,000.
“This month’s report shows that in February Nevada’s unemployment rate remains low, and employment in Nevada was still rising, though at a slowing pace. With the rapidly-changing economic outlook since then, these measures describe the state of the economy as we entered March. As the situation continues to change, we are monitoring unemployment insurance activity, and will continue to post information to our website, NevadaWorkforce.com ” said David Schmidt, Chief Economist for DETR.
Additional February Report Highlights:
Total employment rose by 1.3 percent over the year, growing at the low end of the range seen over the last year (1.3 percent - 3.1 percent).
Construction added the most jobs out of all sectors, for the 12-month period ending in February 2020, increasing by an average of 6,500 jobs over the same time in the year prior.
Nevada’s seasonally adjusted employment growth realized 110 consecutive months of year-over-year gains this month.
Out of the last 91 months, Nevada has outpaced the nation in job growth for 90 months.
This month’s unemployment rate remains at the lowest rate on record in State history, down over 10 percent from it’s all time high of 13.7 percent.
Visit us http://www.nevadaworkforce.com and Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/NVlabormarket
ABOUT THE RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS BUREAU
The Research and Analysis Bureau is Nevada’s premier source for labor market information. A part of DETR, the Bureau is responsible for creating, analyzing, and reporting Nevada’s labor market information, in cooperation with the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
