Michigan’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate declined slightly in August, falling by one-tenth of a percentage point to 5.2 percent, according to data released Thursday by the Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget.
State officials reported that employment decreased by 7,000 over the month, while the number of unemployed residents fell by 6,000. Michigan’s total labor force receded by 14,000.
“Michigan’s unemployment rate decline in August was primarily due to fewer people in the workforce,” said Wayne Rourke, labor market information director for Michigan’s Center for Data and Analytics. “However, seasonally adjusted payroll jobs continued to remain steady over the month.”
The U.S. jobless rate increased by one-tenth of a percentage point to 4.3 percent in August. Michigan’s unemployment rate was 0.9 percentage points higher than the national figure. Over the year, Michigan’s jobless rate rose by 0.2 percentage points, while the national rate edged up by 0.1 point.
Labor force trends
Michigan’s labor force has now declined for five consecutive months, down 38,000 since March. The statewide labor force participation rate fell to 61.5 percent in August, and the employment-population ratio dipped to 58.2 percent.
Detroit metro area
The Detroit-Warren-Dearborn metro area recorded a jobless rate of 4.6 percent in August, down two-tenths of a percentage point from July. Both employment and unemployment in the region fell by 3,000 over the month. Compared with a year ago, the Detroit area added 19,000 jobs, while unemployment declined by 2,000.
Payroll jobs
Michigan’s seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll jobs increased by 5,000 between July and August, reaching 4,534,000.
Professional and business services added 4,000 jobs after three months of losses.
Construction and manufacturing each recorded declines of 2,000 jobs.
Private education and health services grew for the third straight month, adding 9,000 jobs since May.
Over the year, statewide nonfarm payrolls were up 44,000, or 1 percent. The largest annual gains came in private education and health services (+22,000), government (+12,000), and financial activities (+8,000).
The department also reported that July’s payroll job totals were unchanged at 4,529,000 following standard monthly revisions.
