Erie County adds 1,800 manufacturing jobs as unemployment holds at record-low 3.5%

Compare employment numbers from one month to the next and the changes are likely to be small. But compare statistics from one year to the next and trends sometimes emerge.

In the case of Erie County, some of those trends point to good news.

Erie County adds manufacturing jobs

The latest employment numbers from the state Department of Labor & Industry show that Erie's manufacturing sector gained 1,800 jobs since July 2023, bringing manufacturing employment to 19,800.

During that same interval, the education and health services category added 1,100 jobs for a total of 29,800.

Unemployment unchanged at record low

While those numbers show impressive gains, Erie County's employment picture has for the most part been remarkably stable over the past year.

One of the most important numbers, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, has improved over the last year from 3.7% to 3.5%. According to the Department of Labor, July was the sixth consecutive month that Erie's unemployment rate was at that record-low figure.

The statewide unemployment rate was just slightly better at 3.4%, while the national unemployment rate lagged behind at 4.3%.

More: Workers shortages persist in Erie; 'It's still a problem and it's going to remain a problem'

Compared with July 2023, the latest figures do point to one negative sign. The civilian labor force, the number of people who are either working or looking for work, fell by 600 people to 128,100.

More: Erie County unemployment falls to 4.4%, lowest mark since 1989

Most other indicators were stable, with the number of people working in the leisure and hospitality sector unchanged at 15,000 and the number in financial activities likewise unchanged at 7,100.

Erie County's unemployment rate, although historically low, fell short of the state's best-performing metropolitan areas. Both Gettysburg and State College posted seasonally adjusted unemployment rates of 2.6%.

Contact Jim Martin at jmartin@timesnews.com

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie County adds 1,800 manufacturing jobs as unemployment holds at record-low 3.5%