Maui County’s Unemployment Rate 3.3% in January

Unemployment, Jan. 2017. Maui Now graphic.

The Hawaiʻi State Department of Labor & Industrial Relations announced that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for January was 2.8%, compared to 2.9% in December.

The last time Hawaiʻi’s unemployment rate was 2.8% was in July 2007.

Statewide, 673,850 were employed and 19,700 unemployed in January for a total seasonally adjusted labor force of 693,550.

Nationally, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 4.8% in January, compared to 4.7% in December.

Here in Maui County, the non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in January was 3.3%.  On Maui Island, the rate was 3.3%, up from the 2.6% reported the month before; on Molokaʻi unemployment was 4.0%, down from the 5.3% reported in December; and on Lānaʻi, the rate was 3.3%, up from the 2.0% reported in the previous month.

Both initial claims and weeks claims increased by 170 or 12.5% and 1,534 or 21.8% respectively for unemployment benefits compared to one year ago. Over-the-month, both initial claims and weeks claims also grew by 10.5% and 9.9% respectively in January 2017.

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 2.9% in January, compared to 2.6% in December.

Industry Payroll Employment (Establishment Survey)

In a separate measure of employment, total nonagricultural jobs declined over-the-month by 2,000 jobs. Within the major industries, there were job gains in Other Services (+300), Construction (+200), Information (+100) and Financial Activities (+100). Employment in Manufacturing remained stable.

Job losses occurred in Trade, Transportation and Utilities (-1,200), Educational & Health Services (-700), Leisure & Hospitality (-500) and Professional & Business Services (-200).

Within Educational & Health Services, job contraction occurred in all sub-sectors of Health Care & Social Assistance (Ambulatory Health Care, Hospitals, Nursing & Residential Care, Social Assistance). In the Trade, Transportation, & Utilities grouping, the job decline was split between Transportation & Warehousing (in particular Courier & Express Delivery Services) and Wholesale Trade. Government employment dipped by 100 jobs. Compared with one year ago, total non-farm jobs are up 7,300, or 1.1%.