Indiana’s jobless rate in January was 4.2% down from 4.6% in December.
The monthly unemployment rate is a U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics indicator that reflects the number of unemployed people seeking employment within the prior four weeks as a percentage of the labor force, the Indiana Department of Workforce Development said, citing government data. The national jobless rate in January was 6.3%.
The state said Indiana’s labor force had a net increase of 3,803 over the previous month. This was a result of a decrease of 12,700 unemployed residents and an increase of 16,503 employed residents.
Indiana’s total labor force, which includes both Hoosiers employed and those seeking employment, was 3.35 million in January. The state’s 63.3% labor force participation rate was above the national rate of 61.4%.
The state said private sector employment decreased by 111,400 over the year and increased by 3,300 from December. The monthly increase is primarily due to gains in the leisure and hospitality (1,600) and the manufacturing (1,400) sectors.
The state said job gains were offset by losses in the professional and business services (-500) and the financial activities (-100) sectors. Total private employment in January was 2,626,400, which is 114,100 below the December 2019 peak.
Jobless rates in some of Indiana’s metro areas for January showed mixed results.
In the Elkhart-Goshen area, the January jobless rate was 3.5%, which was unchanged from December, but higher than the 3% rate reported in January 2020.
The Gary area’s jobless rate in January was 6.6%, up from 6.3% in December. The Gary area’s January 2020 jobless rate was 5%.
The Michigan City-La Porte area jobless rate was 6.8% in January, up from 6.5% in December. That region’s jobless rate in January 2020 was 4.7%.
The South Bend-Mishawaka area jobless rate in January was 5.7%, up from 5.4% in December. This region’s jobless rate in January 2020 was 4%.
