New Jersey added 6,600 nonfarm jobs in October and the unemployment rate increased to 4.6% as the state’s labor force participation rate fell, according to Thursday estimates released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In October, gains in the private sector were seen in six out of nine major industry sectors: professional and business services (+2,000), leisure and hospitality (+1,800), other services (+1,000), trade, transportation and utilities (+700), education and health services (+100) and information (+100).
Manufacturing (-200) and financial activities (-100) recorded losses, while construction recorded no change for the month.
The public sector recorded a seasonally adjusted gain of 1,200 jobs.
Over the past 12 months, New Jersey has added 85,700 nonfarm jobs distributed across the board, with eight out of nine private sector industries recording a gain between October 2022 and this October. These industries were: education and health services (+45,500), leisure and hospitality (+14,400), trade, transportation and utilities (+4,700), other services (+2,700), construction (+2,700), manufacturing (+2,100), information (+1,600) and financial activities (+300).
Professional and business services (-5,200) was the only sector to record a year-over-year loss.
Over the year, the state’s public sector recorded an increase of 16,800 jobs.
