Mississippi's Employment Situation
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Date: March 8, 2017
Jackson, MS -- Unemployment Rate At Lowest Level In More Than 13 Years. This is the latest information announced today by the Mississippi Department of Employment Security.
Mississippi’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.5% in January, which was unchanged from a month earlier in December 2016. This rate is the lowest level of unemployment in Mississippi since December 2003, when the unemployment rate was also 5.5%. The January 2017 rate is six-tenths of a percentage point lower than a year ago in January 2016, when the rate was 6.1%.
The Labor Force, which is made up of everyone who has a job or is looking for a job, increased in January by 7,700 to 1,291,200. Over the year since January 2016, the Labor Force grew by 5,300.
The number of people working in Mississippi rose in January by 7,300 to 1,219,700. For the year since January 2016, employment in our state posted an increase of 12,600.
The number of unemployed Mississippians edged up in January by 400 to 71,500. However, over the year since January 2016, the number of Mississippians without jobs fell by 7,300.
A separate sampling of employers indicated that the number of non-farm jobs rose in January by 500 to 1,145,500. Over the year since January 2016, the number of non-farm jobs was unchanged.
For details or questions on this information, please contact Mary Willoughby at (601) 321-6260 or by email at: mwilloughby@mdes.ms.gov
