BOSTON (WWLP) – Massachusetts lost 2,800 jobs in September following a gain of 12,800 jobs in August. However, the unemployment number for last month remained historically low.
September saw an unemployment number of 2.6%, which is unchanged from August and is a historically low number, topped only by the 2.5% the state reported in July.
Now, even though September saw a loss in jobs, over the year from September 2022 to 2023 the state gained close to 92,000 jobs.
The largest over-the-year gains were in Education and Health Services, Leisure and Hospitality, and Professional, Scientific, and Business Services. The total labor force declined by an estimated 1,200 since August as 400 more residents were employed and 1,600 fewer residents were unemployed.
As for September’s overview, the largest over-the-month gains were in Education and Health Services with 3,700 jobs, Professional, Scientific, and Business Services with 3,200 jobs, and Trade, Transportation, and Utilities with 1,600 jobs.
Unfortunately, there were also some losses in employment. Manufacturing lost 700 jobs, Financial Activities lost 800 jobs and Government lost the most amount of jobs over the month with a deficit of 10,800 jobs.
The state’s labor force participation rate dropped by 0.1% but compared to September of 2022 when the labor force participation was down 0.4 percentage points. Now, the unemployment rate of 2.6% is 1.2 percentage points lower than the national average of 3.8 percent.
Ellen Fleming is a reporter at the Boston State House who has been a part of the 22News team since 2022. Follow Ellen on X @EllenFlem and view her bio to see more of her work.
