Statewide Unemployment Rate Remains at 2.7%

File photo.

Hawai‘i’s statewide seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate for June was 2.7 percent, according to the state Department of Labor & Industrial Relations (DLIR). The number remains unchanged for four consecutive months.

DLIR reported a not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 4 percent in Hawai’i County.

Statewide, 676,500 residents were employed and 19,100 unemployed in June for a total seasonally adjusted labor force of 695,600. The not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate statewide was 3.2 percent in June, compared with 2.8 percent in May.

Image courtesy of DLIR.

Compared with one year ago, unemployment benefit initial claims and weeks claims increased by 52 (4 percent) and 564 (7.7 percent) respectively. Over-the-month initial and weeks claims increased by 8.8 percent and 2.3 percent respectively in June 2017.

DLIR also reported that nonagricultural jobs increased by 1,200 in June over May. There were also job gains of more than 1,000 in Professional & Business Services, more than 900 in Leisure & Hospitality and more than 400 in Financial Activities.

Employment numbers remained the same in the Trade, Transportation & Utilities sector, and in Manufacturing and Information industries. Educational & Health Services lost roughly 100 jobs, and Construction declined by more than 500 jobs. Government employment fell by 900, primarily due to a significant seasonal drop in the University of Hawai‘i system. Compared with last year, total nonagricultural jobs have increased by 9,800.

Image courtesy of DLIR.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) uses seasonally adjusted statistics to account for dynamic trends in employment numbers generated by seasonal changes like summer vacations and winter holidays. By using historical labor force and job count data from 1990 to 2016, BLS can extract more meaningful numbers according to long-term trends rather than short-term variations created by seasonal events.