Mass. adds another 7,200 jobs
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Massachusetts added another 7,200 jobs in July, according to preliminary data from the Baker administration.
Massachusetts added jobs for the 10th straight month in July, tacking on 7,200, while the unemployment rate remained at 4.7 percent, the Baker administration said Thursday in its preliminary monthly report.
Most of the job gains – 5,600 – came in two key service sectors: education and health, and professional, scientific and business services. In an encouraging sign, the state’s manufacturers added 1,400 jobs, representing about 70 percent of the jobs that industry has gained in the last year.
Jack Healy, director of the Massachusetts Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MassMEP), based in Worcester, said the jump in jobs is part of a “natural growth” for the industry, especially among smaller manufacturers that employ less than 50.
“Business is extremely good,” he said, “especially for the small manufacturer.”
However, Healy cautioned that the July numbers are part of a “fluctuation” that could turn the other way should a larger manufacturer decided to stop or cut back on operations.
In the first seven months of this year, Massachusetts has added 46,200 jobs, the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development (EOLWD) said.
While the number of unemployed Bay State residents increased by 1,000 in July, the number of employed residents decreased by 21,300, which could indicate a rise in the number of workforce retirements. According to the UMass Donahue Institute, federal Census data projected a jump of about 140,000 residents between the ages of 65 and 74, but only 123,000 among adults considered “working age”: 20 to 64.
Other industries that experienced noteworthy job gains in July included information (up 800) and government (1,600), according to the new data. The leisure and hospitality sector lost 2,200 jobs, while the state lost about 700 financial sector jobs.
The preliminary June unemployment rate was also revised slightly upward, from 4.6 percent to 4.7 percent, the EOLWD said.
The Bay State jobless rate remains lower than the national rate of 5.3 percent. Meanwhile, the federal government reported Thursday that the number of first-time jobless claims across the United States rose slightly to 277,000 this week from 273,000. The new number was above the expectations of market analysts polled by Yahoo Finance, who had predicted a slight drop to 272,000.
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