Ohio and U.S. Employment Situation (Seasonally Adjusted)

Ohio's unemployment rate was 6.3 percent in May, up from 5.6 percent in April, according to data released this morning by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. Ohio's nonfarm wage and salary employment increased 9,200 over the month, from 5,408,700 in April, to 5,417,900 in May.

"The sharp rise in the unemployment rate from April is largely due to the high volume of workers who began or resumed job searches in May," ODJFS Director Helen Jones-Kelley said. "While employment also increased, the supply of job seekers outpaced current hiring demands."

The number of workers unemployed in Ohio in May was 380,000, up from 335,000 in April. The number of unemployed has increased by 43,000 in the past 12 months from 337,000. The May unemployment rate for Ohio was up from 5.6 percent in May 2007.

The U.S. unemployment rate for May was 5.5 percent, up from 5.0 percent in April.

Total Nonagricultural Wage and Salary Employment (Seasonally Adjusted)
Ohio's nonagricultural wage and salary employment rose 9,200 over the month, from 5,408,700 in April to 5,417,900 in May, according to the latest business establishment survey conducted by ODJFS.

Service-providing industries advanced 8,000 to 4,425,800. Employment in educational and health services was up 3,200. Other notable increases occurred in leisure and hospitality (+2,400), professional and business services (+2,000), and trade, transportation, and utilities (+1,500). Small declines were noted in information (-500), financial activities (-300), government (-200), and other services (-100). Goods-producing industries were up 1,200 from April. Manufacturing gained 1,400 jobs with growth in durable goods (+800) and nondurable goods (+600). Construction employment slipped 200. Natural resources and mining was virtually unchanged.

Over the past 12 months, nonagricultural wage and salary employment fell 11,000. Goods-producing industries were 21,300 lower due to decreases in durable-goods manufacturing (-12,000) and construction (-6,500). Natural resources and mining added 400 jobs. Increases in educational and health services (+14,300), professional and business services (+3,000), and government (+2,300) helped raise service-providing employment 10,300 over the year. Notable declines were seen in other services (-2,300), leisure and hospitality ( 2,100), information (-1,900), financial activities ( 1,800), and trade, transportation, and utilities (-1,200).

EDITOR'S NOTE: All data cited are produced in cooperation with the U. S. Department of Labor. Data sources include Current Population Survey (U.S. data); Current Employment Statistics Program (nonagricultural wage and salary employment data); and Local Area Unemployment Statistics Program (Ohio unemployment rates). More complete listings of the data appear in the monthly Ohio Labor Market Review. Unemployment rates for all Ohio counties as well as cities with populations of 50,000 or more are presented in the monthly ODJFS Civilian Labor Force Estimates publication. Updated statewide historical data may be obtained by contacting the Bureau of Labor Market Information at (614) 466-1109.

News release dates

A calendar of 2008 release dates is available online at http://lmi.state.oh.us/laus/releases.htm County, city and metropolitan area unemployment rates for May 2008 will be posted online at http://lmi.state.oh.us/laus/current.htm on Tuesday, June 24, 2008. June 2008 unemployment rates and nonagricultural wage and salary data for Ohio will be released by ODJFS on Friday, July 18, 2008. This information and the monthly statistical summaries it is based on are also available at http://jfs.ohio.gov/releases.

Choose this link to view the table on the Ohio and U.S. Employment Situation.

Choose this link to view the table for the Nonagricultural Wage and Salary Employment Estimates for Ohio.