Florida unemployment rate up slightly in April compared to same time last year

(The Center Square) —The Florida Department of Commerce released a new report on the state’s unemployment rate, showing that while it has risen slightly from a year ago, it continues to outpace the national average.

According to the report, Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.3% as of April 2024, an increase of 0.1 percentage point from March 2024 and 0.6% higher than a year ago. The U.S. seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.9% in April.

Also, during the month of April, Florida added 45,300 jobs, bringing the state’s total adjusted nonagricultural employment to nearly 9.95 million. Over the course of a year, 240,500 jobs were gained — an increase of 2.5%. In comparison, the number of jobs available nationally rose by 1.8%.

The report further states that nine out of 10 major industries in Florida had had positive job growth, including education and health services, which added approximately 60,100 jobs, an increase of 4.1%. Trade, transportation and utilities had 3% growth, adding around 57,000 jobs.

The hospitality and leisure industries added approximately 45,600 jobs, a growth of 3.5%, while total government jobs increased by 2.6% or 29,600 jobs. Construction jobs also grew by 3.5%, adding 22,100 jobs.

Manufacturing increased employment by 8,700 positions, a 2.1% increase. Professional and business services added 5,700 jobs, while the information industry grew by 0.9% or 1,500 jobs. Financial services was the only industry to see a net loss of employees, shrinking by 2,500 jobs, an overall loss of 0.4%.

However, not all of Florida has the same unemployment rates and some counties are much higher than the national unemployment rate. In April 2024, Citrus County had the highest unemployment rate of 4.9%. Sumter County followed closely with a rate of 4.7%, while Highlands County had an unemployment rate of 4.6%.

According to the report, Monroe County had the state’s lowest unemployment rate of 2% in April 2024. Miami-Dade County had a rate of 2.1%, while Gulf, Okaloosa, and Wakulla counties all had unemployment rates of 2.8%.

Florida had a seasonally adjusted labor force of more than 11 million and 360,000 unemployed Floridians in April 2024.