Recession continues, jobs down 0.8 percent

Employment in Alaska was down an estimated 0.8 percent in March, over a loss of some 2,600 jobs compared to a year ago, according to the latest statistics released by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development.

“We are still in a recession,” said state labor economist Neal Fried. “There are still fewer jobs here than a year ago.  It has nothing to do with the time of the year.”

The shortage of skilled workers in some areas is due to the availability of jobs in stronger economies in the Lower 48, and fewer people are coming north because there are opportunities closer to home, he said.

As a percentage, oil and gas employment declined 6.0 percent, down 600 jobs. Retail was down 2.0 percent, or 700 jobs and construction showed a loss of 0.8 percent, or 100 jobs, this last being smaller than in recent months.

Employment also fell in all three sectors of government, down 0.7 percent at the federal level, 0.8 percent for the state, and 1.2 percent locally, statistics showed.

Local government’s declines were in public education. Health care continued to add jobs, up by 1,000 since March 2017, for a 2.7 percent increase.

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Alaska’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rates remained at 7.3 percent in March, comparable to the national rate of 4.1 percent.

The state’s not-seasonally adjusted rate dropped to 7.9 percent, down three-tenths of a percentage point from February.

Unemployment rates dropped in all but three of 29 boroughs and census areas, increasing slightly in Petersburg and Kusilvak and heading steady in Aleutians West. The lowest rates were in the Aleutians East Borough, at 1.8 percent and the Aleutians West Census Area, 2.5 percent, as is typical for areas with winter fisheries.

In areas with limited year-round employment, rates were over 20 percent. These included Kusilvak, 22.6 percent; Hoonah-Angoon, 20.5 percent, and the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, 20.1 percent. In Skagway, dependent on summer tourism, unemployment stood at 21.1 percent.

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