The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Arizona reported a slight uptick from 6.8% in May to 6.9% in June. The U.S. seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped two-tenths of a percentage point to 6.1% in June. A year ago, the Arizona seasonally adjusted rate was 8.1% and the U.S. rate was 7.5%.
Arizona shed 39,500 Nonfarm jobs (-1.5%) over the month in June. This loss was fewer than the ten-year (’04-’13) average job loss of 44,000 jobs and the post-recessionary (’10-’13) average loss of 55,000 jobs. Losses were primarily in Government which shed 36,000 jobs. These were seasonal losses in Local (-30,400 jobs) and State (-6,000 jobs) Public Education. The Private Sector lost 3,500 jobs, a smaller loss than the ten-year-average (’04-’13) loss of 4,600 jobs and post-recession (’10-’13) average loss of 8,200 jobs. Five of the eleven major sectors added jobs and six reported jobs losses over the month in June. The largest gain was in Professional and Business Services (3,900 jobs). This gain was more than four-times the ten-year-average gain of 900 jobs and nearly twenty-times the post-recessionary (’10-’13) gain of 200 jobs. Financial Activities added 2,200 jobs, the largest over-the-month gain on record (’90-’14) for the month of June. Financial Activities has averaged a gain of 200 jobs over ten years (’04-’13) and a post-recessionary (’10-’13) average gain of 300 jobs. Manufacturing (900 jobs), Natural Resources and Mining (300 jobs), and Information (300 jobs) all added jobs over the month. Government lost 36,000 jobs, a smaller loss in comparison to the ten-year-average (’04-’13) loss of 39,400 jobs and post-recessionary (’10-’13) average loss of 46,800 jobs. The below average Government loss in June may be the result of a shift in the education schedule as above-average losses were observed in Government in May. Other sectors with job losses include Education and Health Services (-5,500 jobs), Leisure and Hospitality (-2,500 jobs), Other Services (-2,000 jobs), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (-700 jobs), and Construction (-400 jobs). Losses in Construction are atypical for June which has averaged a gain of 2,400 jobs over ten-years (’04-’13).
Over the year, Arizona added 42,800 Nonfarm jobs (1.7%) to the payroll in June. All the gains were from the Private Sector which added 45,900 jobs (2.2%). Government lost 3,100 jobs (-0.8%). Seven of the eleven major sectors added jobs, one reported no change, and three sectors lost jobs. Education and Health Services reported the largest over-the-year gains of 15,200 jobs. Leisure and Hospitality added 12,100 jobs, the largest over-the-year gain in this sector since November 2006. Financial Activities added 9,100 jobs followed by Trade, Transportation and Utilities (7,500 jobs), and Professional and Business Services (5,500 jobs). Manufacturing (600 jobs), and Information (400 jobs) had small gains. Natural Resources and Mining was flat over the year. Construction shed 4,000 jobs, the second consecutive over-the-year loss since June 2011. Government (-3,100 jobs) and Other Services (-500 jobs) both shed jobs.
Get detailed information, graphs and charts on Arizona data at www.azstats.gov