(The Center Square) — Arizona’s unemployment rate increased slightly in June, but tens of thousands of jobs have been added in the state since last year.
The unemployment rate went from 3.4% in May to 3.5% in June, which is better compared with the 3.8% from June 2022, according to data from the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity.
In addition, the seasonally adjusted labor force increased by over 8,000 individuals from May to June and increased by nearly 63 thousand year-over-year.
The biggest gains were in the construction and trade, transportation and utilities sectors in June, whereas there were major losses in government and in the leisure in hospitality sectors, in which 38,300 and 4,300 losses were reported, respectively.
Regarding year-over-year gains for non-farm employment, 71,900 jobs were added from last June to this June, with 58,100 being in the private sector. Private education and health services had the most jobs added year-over-year, clocking in at 24,500. This comes as companies and families continue to move to the state from places such as California in order to get a lower tax rate and cost of living. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Maricopa County is the fastest growing in the nation, as there was a 1.3% increase in population, roughly 57,000, between 2021 and 2022.
Nationally, the unemployment rate sits at 3.6% for June, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, the BLS determined that 452,000 more people are now employed “part time for economic reasons,” upping the figure to 4.2 million nationally.
