State jobless rate ticks down as private-sector employment rises

Indiana’s unemployment rate decreased slightly in June to 3.5%, down from 3.6% in May, according to the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, which released its latest unemployment report Friday.

The state’s unemployment rate matched the rate from June 2018 and was better than the latest national rate of 3.7%.

Indiana’s labor force—which is composed of both employed and unemployed-but-willing-to-work residents—decreased by 10,126 workers from May to June, to 3.39 million.

Indiana’s labor-force participation rate—the percentage of the state’s population that is either employed or actively seeking work—was 64.8 percent, ahead of the national rate of 62.9%.

Private sector employment in Indiana grew by 6,800 in June over the previous month and is up more than 37,000 over the year, the state said. Total private employment is at a record 2,750,700, the state said.

Job gains were seen in the sectors of Private Educational and Health Services (5,000) and Professional and Business Services (1,100). Losses occurred in Manufacturing (-700) and Construction (-500).

The unemployment rate in Indiana for June was lower than the rates in neighboring states Michigan (4.2%), Illinois (4.3%), Ohio (4%) and Kentucky (4.1%).