FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Contact: Stacy Johnston (505) 250-3926
Economic Research & Analysis Bureau
P.O. Box 1928, Albuquerque, NM 87103
For Release: September 18, 2020
New Mexico’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 11.3 percent in August 2020, down from 12.7 percent in July and up from 4.8 percent in the previous year. The national unemployment rate in August was 8.4 percent, down from 10.2 percent in July and up from 3.7 percent in August 2019.
Total non-agricultural payroll employment fell by 70,500 jobs, or 8.2 percent, between August 2019 and August 2020. Losses came from both the public and the private sector. The private sector was down 63,600 jobs, or 9.4 percent. The public sector was down 6,900 jobs, or 3.7 percent. Losses were reported in both components of the private sector. The private service-providing industries were down 51,400 jobs, or 9.0 percent, while the goods-producing industries were down 12,200 jobs, representing a decrease of 11.4 percent.
All major industry sectors experienced over-the-year job losses. Leisure and hospitality continued to report the heaviest employment losses, with a drop of 29,700 jobs, or 28.9 percent, compared to the previous year. Employment in mining and construction was down 10,500 jobs, or 13.5 percent. The majority of losses in mining and construction came from mining, which contracted by 8,000 jobs, or 30.3 percent. Construction employment was down 2,500 jobs, or 4.9 percent, over the year. Professional and business services employment was down 6,900 jobs, or 6.1 percent. Employment in education and health services fell by 5,000 jobs, or 3.6 percent.
Within this industry, health care and social assistance was down 4,800 jobs, or 4.0 percent, while educational services was down 200 jobs, or 1.1 percent. Miscellaneous other services employment decreased by 3,900 jobs, or 13.0 percent. Trade, transportation, and utilities was down 2,800 jobs, or 2.0 percent. Within the industry, transportation, warehousing, and utilities was down 3,200 jobs, or 12.4 percent; wholesale trade was down 300 jobs, or 1.4 percent; and retail trade was up 700 jobs, or 0.8 percent. Manufacturing employment decreased by 1,700 jobs, or 5.9 percent. Within this industry, all losses occurred in durable goods manufacturing, which was down 10.6 percent. Non-durable goods manufacturing employment was unchanged from its previous year’s job level. Financial activities reported a loss of 1,600 jobs, or 4.5 percent. Information was down 1,500 jobs, or 13.4 percent.
Within the public sector, the heaviest job losses came in local government, which was down 6,900 jobs, or 6.7 percent. Within local government employment, local government education shed 2,800 jobs, representing a loss of 5.6 percent. Local government excluding education was down 4,100 jobs, or 7.8 percent. Employment in state government was down 2,100 jobs, or 3.9 percent. Within state government, all losses came from state government education which was down 2,500 jobs, or 11.2 percent. State government excluding education was up 400 jobs, or 1.3 percent. Federal government reported a gain of 2,100 jobs, or 7.1 percent.
Further analysis will be provided in the Labor Market Review scheduled for release on September 25.
Data can be found online at the following locations:
https://www.dws.state.nm.us/en-us/Researchers/Data/Employment-Snapshot and www.jobs.state.nm.us/analyzer.
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