Employment Situation in September: State-Level Analysis

Nonfarm payroll employment increased in 44 states and the District of Columbia in September compared to the previous month while six states lost jobs. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nationwide total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 263,000 in September, following a gain of 315,000 jobs in August.

On a month-over-month basis, employment data was strong in Florida, which added 48,800 jobs, followed by Texas (+40,000), and North Carolina (+17,400). Six states lost a total of 18,300 jobs.  In percentage terms, employment in New Hampshire and Kentucky each increased by 0.8% while Delaware reported a 0.6% decline between August and September.

Year-over-year ending in September, 5.7 million jobs have been recovered, marking a full recovery of the labor market from the COVID-19 pandemic induced recession. All the states and District of Columbia added jobs compared to a year ago. The range of job gains spanned 721,800 jobs in Texas to 6,600 jobs added in Alaska. In percentage terms, Texas reported the highest increase by 5.6%, while Mississippi increased by 1.2% compared to a year ago.

Across the 48 states which reported construction sector jobs data—which includes both residential as well as non-residential construction— 30 states reported an increase in September compared to August, while 15 lost construction sector jobs. New Hampshire, Oregon, and Rhode Island reported no change. Florida added 6,900 construction jobs while New Jersey lost 2,700 jobs. Overall, the construction industry added a net 19,000 jobs in September compared to the previous month. In percentage terms, North Dakota increased by 4.6% while Alabama reported a decline of 2.4% between August and September.

Year-over-year, construction sector jobs in the U.S. increased by 292,000, which is a 3.9% increase compared to the September 2021 level. California added 44,500 jobs, which was the largest gain of any state, while New Jersey lost 3,800 construction sector jobs. In percentage terms, North Dakota had the highest annual growth rate in the construction sector by 19.2%. Over this period, South Carolina reported a decline of 2.8%.