New Jersey lost a total of 10,900 jobs in April to fall to a seasonally adjusted level of 4,374,400, according to a Thursday announcement from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The unemployment rate declined by 0.1 percentage point, however, to 4.7% for the month.
The number of unemployed residents is now at an eight-month low.
In April, six out of nine private industries recorded losses. They were: leisure and hospitality (-8,900), professional and business services (-2,600), manufacturing (-1,000), information (-700), financial activities (-700) and other services (-700). Sectors that added jobs for the month were trade, transportation and utilities (+2,400), construction (+300), and private education and health services (+200). Public-sector jobs increased by 800 in April.
Over the past 12 months, New Jersey has added 76,000 nonfarm jobs. Some 87% of those gains were in the private sector, with six out of nine private sector industries recording a gain between April 2023 and April 2024.
These industries are: private education and health services (+40,300), trade, transportation and utilities (+12,100), construction (+5,400), other services (+5,000), leisure and hospitality (+3,700) and professional and business services (+3,300). Sectors that recorded losses were information (-2,200), manufacturing (-800) and financial activities (-600). The public sector recorded a gain of 9,700 over the past 12 months.
