Kansas unemployment rate holds steady at 2.4% in July, economy adds private-sector jobs

TOPEKA — The unemployment rate in Kansas remained at 2.4% in July with growth of 4,000 private-sector jobs and a decline of 500 in the government workforce.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Kansas Department of Labor said a pair of monthly surveys — one of employers and the other of households — indicated Kansas’ jobless rate stood at 2.4% in July and June.

The rate in 2022 has flowed from a high of 2.6% in January to a low of 2.3% in May.

“Kansas and the U.S. have maintained relatively low unemployment rates so far in 2022, with Kansas remaining at 2.4% and the U.S. reaching 3.5% in July,” said Amber Shultz, secretary of the state Department of Labor.

In 2021, the Kansas unemployment rate ranged from 3.8% in January to 2.8% in December. During July of last year, Kansas had a rate of 3.4%.

The seasonally adjusted job estimate for Kansas showed total nonfarm payroll, which includes private sector and government employers, increased by 3,500 in July. That number was the result of 4,000 additional private-sector workers combined with 500 fewer government workers.

Emilie Doerksen, a state labor department economist, said the Kansas manufacturing industry expanded by 1,500 jobs. The growth also reflected 1,000 hires in the trade, transportation and utility sector, she said.

Since July 2021, nonfarm employment has risen by 13,500 in Kansas. It represented 16,700 additional private-sector jobs and a reduction of 3,200 government employees.

The federal labor bureau reported July jobless figures of Kansas’ four border states, compared to June: Nebraska, 2% in July, up from 1.9% in June; Missouri, 2.5%, down from 2.8%; Oklahoma, 3%, up from 2.9%; and Colorado, 3.3%, down from 3.4%.