Jacksonville’s unemployment rate jumped higher in June, but the overall trend in the labor market remains positive.
The unemployment rate in the Jacksonville metropolitan area — consisting of Duval, Baker, Clay, Nassau and St. Johns counties — rose from 4.1 percent in May to 4.7 percent in June, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity reported Friday.
That’s a normal seasonal trend in June as new college and high school graduates enter the labor force for the first time and are unable to find jobs. The Department of Economic Opportunity does not adjust the Jacksonville data for seasonal factors.
However, according to the University of North Florida’s Local Economic Indicators Project, even when the data is seasonally adjusted it still shows an increase in the area’s unemployment rate from 4.26 percent in May to 4.45 percent in June.
Despite the increase in June, the labor market data this year has been mostly good. UNF economist Albert Loh said the low rate in May might have “painted too rosy of a picture” and could be an anomaly.
“If we ignore what happened in May, we are still in a steady decline” in the unemployment rate, he said.
Duval County’s unemployment rate also rose sharply from 4.4 percent in May to 5 percent last month, without seasonal adjustment, the Department of Economic Opportunity said.
LEIP reported even after seasonal adjustment, the county’s jobless rate rose from 4.27 percent to 4.79 percent.
Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.7 percent last month, the Department of Economic Opportunity said.
A separate survey by the state agency showed job growth in the Jacksonville area was strong at 3.6 percent in June, with 23,100 jobs added to business payrolls in the previous 12 months.
That beat Florida’s statewide growth rate of 3 percent.
Every major business sector grew jobs over the past year except the information sector, both statewide and in the Jacksonville area. Information sector jobs dropped by 2.2 percent in Jacksonville and 1.5 percent in Florida.
The strongest growth in the Jacksonville area came in construction and the transportation, warehouse and utilities sector, both up 6.8 percent.