In Kansas for May 2023, the labor force grew, the number of jobs fell, and the unemployment rate was unchanged, all compared to the previous month. Over the year, Kansas is near the middle of the states in job growth.
Data released from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, part of the United States Department of Labor, shows a mixed employment picture in Kansas for May 2023 when compared to the previous month.
(Click charts and tables for larger versions.)
Using seasonally adjusted data, from April 2023 to May 2023, nonfarm employment in Kansas fell by 1,500 jobs (0.1 percent). Over the year, the number of Kansas nonfarm jobs for May 2023 was higher by 31,800 (2.3 percent) over the same month last year. This is using seasonally adjusted data.
Over the year (May 2022 to May 2023), the Kansas labor force rose by 14,912 people (1.0 percent) using seasonally adjusted data from the household survey, with an increase of 3,467 (0.2 percent) over the last month.
There are now 172,400 (13.6 percent) more jobs in Kansas than in April 2020, which is the low point since the pandemic’s start. There are 14,000 (1.0 percent) more jobs than in February 2020, just before the pandemic. These are counts of nonfarm jobs with employers in Kansas, without regard to the residence of the employee.
Considering employed people from the household survey, there are now 162,329 (12.4 percent) more working people in Kansas than in April 2020, and 15,326 (1.1 percent) more than in February 2020. The household survey counts Kansas residents with nonfarm jobs, without regard to the location of the job.
The number of unemployed persons fell from April 2023 to May 2023 by 582 persons (1.3 percent). The unemployment rate was 2.9 percent in May 2023, unchanged from the previous two months, and up by 0.4 percentage points over the year.
Comparing Kansas to the nation: Using seasonal data, the number of Kansas nonfarm jobs is 2.26 percent higher than 12 months ago, while nationally, the same statistic is 2.67 percent higher. Non-seasonal data shows the number of Kansas nonfarm jobs is 2.04 percent higher than 12 months ago, while nationally, the same statistic is 2.64 percent higher.
To learn more about this data and what the employer and household surveys measure, see Visualization: Employment measures. Also, see Counting jobs in Kansas.
Click charts and tables for larger versions.
Chart 1a shows job changes for Kansas and the nation from the previous month, and we can see positive changes for Kansas over the past year except for three of the last four months, including May 2023.
Chart 1b shows job changes for Kansas and the nation from the same month one year ago. In recent months, the growth in Kansas has been similar to the nation.
In Chart 3, showing unemployment rates for Kansas and the nation, we see that the rate in Kansas is lower than the national rate, as it had been before the pandemic. The unemployment rate in Kansas is little changed over the last seven months.
Chart 2a shows monthly changes in the labor force for Kansas and the nation. The Kansas labor force has both expanded and contracted since the pandemic, as has the national labor force.
For industry groups, the following chart 6b shows the number of employees in various industries in May 2022 and May 2023.
Chart 6a uses the same data but shows the percent change for the same period. All industry groups have gains except for Information.
The rate of job growth in Kansas over the year had been lowest in the nation for some months of 2022, but has improved since then. Despite a loss of jobs in May, Kansas ranks twenty-sixth in job growth over the year. The following chart shows the monthly and annual change in the number of jobs in the states, along with the rank of the state.
The report for this month from the Kansas Department of Labor is here. The report from BLS may be found here. It appears there are no news releases or social media posts from Governor Kelly on this topic.
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