Employment Situation in July: State-Level Analysis

Nonfarm payroll employment increased in 36 states in July compared to the previous month, while 14 states and the District of Columbia lost jobs. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nationwide total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 187,000 in July, following a gain of 185,000 jobs in June.

On a month-over-month basis, employment data was strong in Florida, which added 44,500 jobs, followed by California (+27,900), and Texas (+26,300). Fourteen states and the District of Columbia lost a total of 31,300 jobs.  In percentage terms, employment in Vermont increased by 0.9% while Delaware reported a 0.6% decline between June and July.

Year-over-year ending in July, 3.4 million jobs have been added, marking a full recovery of the labor market. Except for Rhode Island, all the other states and District of Columbia added jobs compared to a year ago. The range of job gains spanned 441,700 jobs in Texas to 2,100 jobs added in Vermont. Rhode Island lost 5,600 jobs on a year-over-year basis. In percentage terms, Nevada reported the highest increase by 3.8%, while Rhode Island decreased by 1.1% 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— 26 states reported an increase in July compared to June, while 21 states lost construction sector jobs. New Mexico reported no change on a month-over-month basis. Texas added 4,700 construction jobs, while Washington lost 2,500 jobs. Overall, the construction industry added a net 19,000 jobs in July compared to the previous month. In percentage terms, Nebraska increased by 3.1% while Maine reported a decline of 2.7% between June and July.

Year-over-year, construction sector jobs in the U.S. increased by 198,000, which is a 2.5% increase compared to the July 2022 level. Texas added 25,200 jobs, which was the largest gain of any state, while Colorado lost 3,000 construction sector jobs. In percentage terms, Arkansas had the highest annual growth rate in the construction sector by 10.1%. Over this period, Colorado reported a decline of 1.6%.