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INDIANAPOLIS (March 14, 2016) – Indiana’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained at 4.6 percent in January. (Due to the yearly federal benchmarking process, December’s unemployment rate was revised upward to 4.6 percent.) The Hoosier labor force maintained a positive trend, gaining more than 20,000 individuals in January. Indiana’s labor force growth over the year now stands at more than 51,000, and 116,700 added since January 2013. In January, the Hoosier labor force participation rate again exceed the national rate (64.2 percent vs. 62.7 percent).
Private sector employment gains in January occurred in the Leisure and Hospitality (+4,700), Financial Activities (+1,500) and Construction (+1,200) sectors. Gains were partially offset by contraction in the Professional and Business Services (-3,100), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (-2,300), and Private Education & Health Services (-1,600) sectors. Indiana’s private sector grew by 43,500 jobs in 2016, and has added nearly 141,000 jobs over the past three years.
“Private sector employment in the Hoosier State has grown by nearly 141,000 over the past three years,” said Steven J. Braun, Commissioner of the Indiana Department of Workforce Development. “Additionally, Indiana continues to have an unemployment rate lower than all of our neighboring states.”
Braun also noted that claims for unemployment insurance in 2016 were at their lowest levels since 1998, and the number of unemployed Hoosiers has decreased by 43 percent over the past three years.
Employment by Sector
Sectors showing gains in January include: Leisure and Hospitality (+4,700), Financial Activities (+1,500) and Construction (+1,200). The Professional and Business Services (-3,100), Trade, Transportation and Utilities (-2,300), Private Educational & Health Services (-1,600), and Manufacturing (-300) sectors declined in January. Total Nonfarm employment increased in January (+2,600).
Midwest Unemployment Rates
| January 2015 | December 2015 | January 2016 | Monthly Change | |
| Indiana | 5.4% | 4.6%* | 4.6% | 0.0% |
| U.S. | 5.7% | 5.0% | 4.9% | -0.1% |
| Illinois | 6.0% | 6.1% | 6.3% | 0.2% |
| Kentucky | 5.3% | 5.7% | 5.8% | 0.1% |
| Michigan | 6.0% | 5.1% | 4.9% | -0.2% |
| Ohio | 5.1% | 4.8% | 4.9% | 0.1% |
*Indiana’s December 2015 unemployment rate was revised up to 4.6 percent as part of the yearly U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics benchmarking process.
December private sector employment was revised down -300.
