Maui County’s Unemployment Rate 2.7% in December

Unemployment for Dec. 2016. PC: Maui Now/ Wendy Osher

The Hawaiʻi State Department of Labor & Industrial Relations (DLIR) today announced that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for December was 2.9 percent, compared to 3.0 percent in November.

The last time Hawaiʻi’s unemployment rate was 2.9 percent was in September 2007.

Statewide, 679,900 were employed and 20,000 unemployed in December for a total seasonally adjusted labor force of 699,900.

Nationally, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 4.7% in December, compared to 4.6% in November.

Here in Maui County, the non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in December was 2.7%.  On Maui Island, the rate was 2.6%; on Molokaʻi unemployment was 5.4%; and on Lānaʻi, the rate was 1.9%.

Both initial claims and weeks claims increased by 125 or 10% and 1,095 or 16.4% respectively for unemployment benefits compared to one year ago. Over-the-month, both initial claims and weeks claims also grew by 21.6% and 5% respectively in December 2016.

The unemployment rate figures for the State of Hawaiʻi and the US in this release are seasonally adjusted, in accordance with the US Bureau of Labor Statistics methodology. The not seasonally adjusted rate for the State was 2.6% in December, compared to 2.8% in November.

Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey)

In a separate measure of employment, total nonagricultural jobs declined over-the-month by 700 jobs. Within the major industries, there were job gains in Professional & Business Services (+1,000), Leisure & Hospitality (+800), Trade, Transportation, & Utilities (+700), Educational & Health Services (+500), and Construction (+300). The majority of the rise in Leisure & Hospitality took place in Accommodation. Job losses occurred in Manufacturing (-100), Other Services (-300), and Financial Activities (-400). Government jobs went down by 3,200, mostly due to the release of general election temporary workers. In comparison with December 2015, total nonfarm jobs are up 13,200, or 2.1%.