Region's jobless rate fell in December
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Unemployment in the Pittsburgh region followed state and national trends in December and fell, dropping two-tenths of a percentage point to hit 6.9 percent, the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry reported today.
Pennsylvania's rate of 7.6 percent last month was down three-tenths of a percentage point from November, and the national rate fell two-tenths of a percentage point to 8.5 percent.
The Pittsburgh region's nonfarm job total reached its highest level since April 2001, increasing by 5,200 to 1.15 million.
Seasonal employment accounted for a boost in service-providing jobs, which rose 4,200 in December to a record level of 1.01 million. The retail trade alone added 3,500 jobs since November during the holiday shopping season.
Regional goods producers, however, cut 3,700 jobs since November's count of more than 150,000 positions.
The construction sector shed 4,100 jobs over the month, while manufacturing and mining and logging were relatively unchanged. The leisure and hospitality industries, as well as the education and health services sectors, experienced the declines typically seen in the winter months, down 900 jobs each.
Local unemployment numbers are seasonally adjusted to account for employment fluctuations, and figures are gathered by a telephone survey.
All counties in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area saw unemployment drop. Fayette County, which traditionally mirrors the national figure, dropped one-tenth of a percentage point to 8.6 percent. Allegheny County fell three-tenths of a percentage point for a December rate of 6.6 percent. Butler County dropped one-tenth of a percentage point and had the lowest rate in the region at 6.4 percent.
The Pittsburgh region is the state's second-largest labor market and had the fifth-lowest unemployment rate in December.
Statewide, Centre County had the lowest unemployment rate at 5.1 percent, and Cameron County had the highest at 11.5 percent.
First Published January 31, 2012 12:00 am
