Rhode Island-Based Jobs Increase 100 From June; July Unemployment Rate Remains at 2.7 Percent

Rhode Island-Based Jobs Increase 100 From June; July Unemployment Rate Remains at 2.7 Percent

The Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training announced Thursday that the state's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 2.7 percent in July, matching the lowest rate on "record," based on current methodology for calculating labor force statistics that began in 1976.

The July rate was unchanged from the June rate of 2.7 percent. Last year the rate was 6.0 percent in July.
         
The U.S. unemployment rate was 3.5 percent in July, down one-tenth of a percentage point from June. The U.S. rate was 5.4 percent in July 2021.

RI by the Numbers 

GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST

The number of unemployed Rhode Island residents — those residents classified as available for and actively seeking employment — was 15,200, down 500 from June. The number of unemployed residents decreased by 19,600 over the year. Since April 2020, the height of pandemic-related shutdowns, the number of unemployed RI residents is down 85,100.
 
The number of employed Rhode Island residents was 558,000, up 1,800 over the month and up 18,000 over the year. Since April 2020, the number of employed Rhode Island residents is up 111,900.
 
The Rhode Island labor force totaled 573,200 in July, up 1,300 over the month but down 1,600 from July 2021. The labor force is up 26,800 from April 2020. 
 
Since February 2020, the month prior to the pandemic-related shutdowns, the number of unemployed RI residents is down 5,800 and the number of employed RI residents is up 7,200. Currently, there are 1,400 more RI residents participating in the labor force than there were prior to the start of the pandemic. The labor force, employment and unemployment levels have now reached points surpassing pre-pandemic levels.

Jobs in Focus

The Rhode Island economy reported a modest job gain in July, as the number of jobs totaled 496,200, an increase of 100 jobs from the revised June count of 496,100. The June job count was revised down by 300. This revision resulted in jobs decreasing by 300 from May to June, the first monthly job loss since January.
 
The Administrative & Waste Services and Educational Services sectors each added 400 jobs in July, followed by a gain of 300 jobs in the Government sector.
 
Rounding out the July gains was an increase of 200 jobs reported in both the Manufacturing and Professional & Technical Services sectors, and an increase of 100 jobs in both the Financial Activities and Information sectors.
 
Offsetting some of the July job gains was a loss of 400 jobs reported in both the Health Care & Social Assistance and Retail Trade sectors. The Retail Trade sector has reported a job loss for four consecutive months, totaling 1,300 jobs.
 
The Arts, Entertainment & Recreation and Other Services sectors lost 300 and 200 jobs in July, respectively, while a loss of 100 jobs was reported in each of the Accommodation & Food Services, Management of Companies and Wholesale Trade sectors.
 
The number of jobs in the Construction, Mining & Logging and Transportation & Utilities sectors remained unchanged in July.