Nevada's unemployment hits an all-time low

Nevada’s unemployment rate hit an all-time low in January, the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation reported Wednesday. It is 10 percentage points less than the all-time high.

Nevada’s January unemployment rate was 3.6 percent, down a tenth of

a percentage point from December and half percentage point from a year earlier.

“I am excited to see January’s numbers reflect that Nevada’s unemployment rate has hit its all-time low and that our employment growth is ongoing,” Gov. Steve Sisolak said in a statement. “As Nevada continues to grow, we must look to the future and continue working to provide every jobseeker in Nevada with access to high-quality jobs in this economy.”

Construction added 6,700 jobs compared to a year earlier, the fastest growing segment of the labor market. Professional and business services and trade, transportation and utilities each added more than 5,000 jobs in a year; education and health services added almost 4,000 jobs; there were more than 3,000 government jobs added.

The DETR report said Nevada’s unemployment insurance claims are down 2,521 claims over the month and 863 claims over the year. The 12-month average level of initial claims continues to trend below 10,000, only the third time since March 1999, DETR reported.

As of December 2019, 327,500 jobs have been added since the bottom-out in September 2010.

Total employment rose by 1.6 percent for the year.

“January’s 3.6 unemployment rate is the lowest rate dating back to 1976 and is down over 10 percent from its all-time high,” David Schmidt, chief DETR economist, said in a statement. “For the first time since July 2007, there is no longer a gap between Nevada’s unemployment rate and the nation’s. With a historically low unemployment rate and unemployment insurance claims also at historic lows, the tight job market is likely making it challenging for businesses to find workers. Competition for this diminishing pool of unemployed job seekers should continue to support rising wages and expanding job opportunities for anyone looking to enter the job market or pursue a better career, particularly younger jobseekers, jobseekers with a disability, and jobseekers in poverty; groups still unemployed at a much higher rate than the state as a whole.”