Jobless rate unchanged in Austin at 4.7%
Austin’s unemployment rate remained at 4.7 percent in May as the city’s workforce and number of jobless both increased slightly.
Austin’s non-seasonably adjusted jobless rate in May remained unchanged from April, according to data released Tuesday by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development. The city’s workforce grew from 13,712 to 13,780 and the number of jobless — those actively seeking work — edged up from 640 to 653.
Austin’s unemployment rate remains well below what it was this time last year, at 5.4 percent, and the lowest it has been since November 2011.
Mower County’s unemployment rate also remained unchanged from April, at 4.5 percent.
Minnesota’s seasonally adjusted jobless rate was 5.6 percent in May, unchanged from April. Nationally, that number increased from 8.1 percent in April to 8.2 percent in May, the first time it went up since June 2011, when it went from 9 percent to 9.1.