Louisiana hits lowest unemployment rate in history

LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) - Data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics today showed that Louisiana’s unemployment rate is at its lowest rate since the bureau began collecting data.

The unemployment rate is 3.3 percent for August 2023, and the number of unemployed individuals is 68,814, both of which are record lows. This is the twenty-ninth consecutive month the agency is seeing a drop in unemployment rates.

“Louisiana is not only consistently breaking records for low employment, we are ahead of the nation,” said Gov. John Bel Edwards.

The national rate of unemployment is 3.8 percent.

Employment rose in all seven of the largest parishes in Louisiana from March 2022 to March 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. St. Tammany Parish had the largest over-the-year increase in employment, at 3.5 percent.

Louisiana Workforce Commission Secretary Robert Wooley said their office has worked hard to recover from setbacks of the pandemic and the hurricanes of 2020.

“We have had many job fairs over the month throughout the state, where jobseekers have been able to speak with employers, fill out job applications, interview and receive conditional job offers on site, and visit our Mobile Workforce Unit for assistance in their career journey,” said Wooley. “This is a true testament to how we are working to continuously put our Louisiana citizens back to work.”

Louisiana employment has increased across different sectors and industries.

The industries seeing the largest gains for seasonally-adjusted jobs over the year have been private education and health services, construction and government.

Jobs and employment trends data are often showed as seasonally or non-seasonally adjusted. The seasonal adjustment measures and removes the influences of predictable seasonal patterns to reveal how employment and unemployment figures change from month to month.

Over a year, the labor force size, available jobs, and employment rates undergo predictable fluctuations due to seasonal changes in weather, harvests, major holidays, and school schedules. Seasonal adjustment reduces the impact of these changes, making it easier to understand trends.

Copyright 2023 KPLC. All rights reserved.