Hawaiʻi Unemployment Rate Remains Unchanged in May

By Maui Now Staff

The Hawaiʻi State Department of Labor & Industrial Relations announced that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for May was 4.1 percent–the same as in the preceding four months.

Statewide, 648,750 were employed and 27,400 unemployed in May for a total seasonally adjusted labor force of 676,200. Nationally, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.5 percent in May, up from 5.4 percent in April.

Both initial claims and weeks claims decreased by 327–minus 19.9 percent–and 2,120–down 20.5 percent–respectively for unemployment benefits compared to a year ago. Over-the-month initial claims fell while weeks claims increased by 3 percent and .4 percent respectively from April 2015.

The unemployment rate figures for the State of Hawaiʻi and the US are seasonally adjusted. The not seasonally adjusted rate for the state was 3.9 percent in May, the same as in March and April.

The seasonal fluctuations in the number of employed and unemployed persons reflect hiring and layoff patterns that accompany regular events such as the winter holiday season and the summer vacation season. Seasonally adjusted statistical series enable more meaningful data comparisons between months or with an annual average.