Isaac Hale, Daily Herald file photo
The Utah Department of Workforce Services’ Administrative Offices are pictured on Thursday, March 26, 2020, in Salt Lake City.
Utah’s unemployment rate for July 2022 stood at 2% for the fourth straight month according to a report released Friday by the Utah Department of Workforce Services. In Utah County, unemployment stayed steady at 1.8% in July, the same as June, and down from 2.2% at this time last year.
Approximately 35,500 Utahns are unemployed, according to the report, keeping Utah’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate steady at 2.0%, compared to the national unemployment rate for August, which rose two-tenths of a percent to 3.7%.
“This month’s economic data continues to hold strong in the face of national dialogue about inflation and other economic hurdles,” said Mark Knold, Chief Economist at the Department of Workforce Services, in a statement. “Both the national and Utah jobs data are robust and show that hiring remains strong. The national unemployment rate moved up a little, but when said rates are as low as they currently are, small upward movements are not viewed as a concern. Utah’s rate remained unchanged at 2.0%. This is the fourth straight month that Utah’s unemployment rate has been at 2.0%.”
Total nonagricultural employment for the Provo-Orem MSA increased from 290,200 in August 2021 to 303,400 this year, a 4.5% increase. The Goods Producing sector saw the biggest total job increase, going from 50,500 jobs in August 2021 to 54,500 jobs in August 2022, a 7.9% increase.
Eight of Utah’s 10 major private-sector industry groups posted net year-over-year job gains over the past year, led by Trade, Transportation, Utilities, Education and Health Services, Construction, and Leisure and Hospitality.
Only two sectors have seen job contractions over the past year, including financial activities with a loss of 2,500 jobs, and Professional and Business Services, with a loss of 600 jobs. However, Utah’s private sector employment still recorded a year-over-year expansion of 3.7%, or a job increase of 50,800.
Utah’s non-farm payroll employment for August increased an estimated 3.4% across the past year, adding a cumulative 54,400 jobs statewide since August 2021. Utah’s job count currently stands at 1,673,200.
Utah County holds the fifth lowest unemployment rate in the state behind Summit, Morgan, Juab and Cache counties. According to the most recent estimates from the US Census Bureau, Utah County has a population of 684,986 people, more than triple the four counties with lower rates combined (205,322 people).
More information can be found at https://jobs.utah.gov/wi/update/index.html.
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