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Unemployment rates decline in all metro areas

BATON ROUGE – Data released by the Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS) for May 2019 shows that the number of not seasonally adjusted unemployed individuals has decreased by 14,154 since May 2018 to 85,981 in May 2019. The number of not seasonally adjusted employed individuals has increased by 3,237 since May 2018 to 2,008,064 in May 2019.

The not seasonally adjusted civilian labor force, or the number of people who are employed in addition to those looking for work, increased by 5,588 from April 2019, to 2,094,045 in May 2019.

The not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate has decreased 0.7 percentage points since May 2018 to 4.1 percent in May 2019. As it pertains to Louisiana’s not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increase from April 2019, on average, Louisiana's not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increases by 0.3 percentage points from April to May each year. This is the lowest not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for the month of May in series history.

This is the third straight month that all Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) have declined over the year. Not seasonally adjusted May 2019 unemployment rates for the nine MSAs are as follows:

• Alexandria: 4.4 percent, up from 3.7 percent in April 2019, but down from 5.2 percent from May 2018.

• Baton Rouge: 3.7 percent, up from 3.1 percent in April 2019, but down from 4.2 percent from May 2018.

• Hammond: 4.6 percent, up from 3.9 percent in April 2019, but down from 5.2 percent from May 2018.

• Houma: 4.1 percent, up from 3.4 percent in April 2019, but down from 4.8 percent from May 2018.

• Lafayette: 4.1 percent, up from 3.4 percent in April 2019, but down from 4.9 percent from May 2018.

• Lake Charles: 3.3 percent, up from 2.8 percent in April 2019, but down from 3.8 percent from May 2018.

• Monroe: 4.6 percent, up from 4.0 percent in April 2019, but down from 5.1 percent from May 2018.

• New Orleans: 3.8 percent, up from 3.2 percent in April 2019, but down from 4.5 percent from May 2018.

• Shreveport: 4.4 percent, up from 3.8 percent in April 2019, but down from 5.1 percent from May 2018.

About the Louisiana Workforce Commission

The Louisiana Workforce Commission is an agency of state government that administers programs designed to enhance workforce growth and provide family-sustaining jobs for Louisiana residents. The commission monitors employment, administers unemployment compensation and tax funds, provides training resources for employers and employees and oversees worker compensation benefits. The agency also gathers and supplies information on the labor market and occupational sectors in Louisiana.