North Carolina Department of Commerce
LUMBERTON — April unemployment data for Bladen County won’t be known for a couple of weeks, but on Friday, the North Carolina Department of Commerce released statewide data — which could foretell in part what to expect locally.
The state’s seasonally adjusted April 2023 unemployment rate was 3.45, decreasing 0.1 of a percentage point from March’s revised rate. The national rate decreased 0.1 of a percentage point to 3.4 percent.
Locally, the biggest employment sectors are Manufacturing, Educational Services, and Public Administration, the first two of which saw employment increases in April on the state level.
This state-wide trend may indicate more positive numbers for Bladen County. The county-level unemployment update is scheduled for May 31.
North Carolina’s unemployment rate increased 0.1 of a percentage point from a year ago. The number of people employed increased 16,200 over the month to 5,012,688 and increased 24,183 over the year, according to the Commerce Department.
The number of people unemployed decreased 4,221 over the month to 178,853 and increased 6,517 over the year, the state data showed.
Seasonally adjusted Total Nonfarm employment, as gathered through the monthly establishment survey, increased 3,600 to 4,891,300 in April, according to the state data released on Friday
Major industries experiencing increases were Education & Health Services, 3,000; Trade, Transportation & Utilities, 3,000; Financial Activities, 1,200; Other Services, 700; and Construction, 300. Major industries experiencing decreases were Professional & Business Services, 1,800; Leisure & Hospitality Services, 1,400; Manufacturing, 1,100; Information, 200; and Government, 100. Mining & Logging employment remained unchanged, according to the Commerce Department.
Since April 2022, Total Nonfarm jobs increased 117,100 with the Total Private sector increasing by 110,600 and Government increasing by 6,500. Major industries experiencing increases were Leisure & Hospitality Services, 29,200; Education & Health Services, 27,700; Professional & Business Services, 17,100; Other Services, 9,400; Construction, 8,000; Trade, Transportation & Utilities, 6,700; Government, 6,500; Financial Activities, 6,100; Manufacturing, 3,400; and Information, 3,100. The only major industry experiencing a decrease over the year was Mining & Logging, 100.