DED releases May jobs report

June 19, 2019
Jefferson City
Jobs continue to grow with unemployment at near record lows.

May jobs report highlights:

• Missouri non-farm payroll employment increased by 2,500 jobs in May.
• Missouri's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained at 3.3 percent.

To view the May 2019 jobs report, click here. 

Economic indicators  you need to know:

Job growth and record low unemployment fuel Missouri's workforce

  • • The number of jobs in the state continues to rise.
  •         o Missouri’s economy added 2,500 jobs this month.
  •         o Over the past year, employment has grown by 31,000 jobs. 
  • • Unemployment remained steady at near record lows.                      
  •         o Missouri’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.3 percent.
  •         o Out of the roughly 3 million individuals in Missouri’s civilian labor force, only an estimated 101,321 were unemployed
  •            in May.
  • • Missouri continues to see over-the-year job gains across key industries.
  •         o Accommodation and Food Services (+10,400 jobs, up 4 percent)
  •         o Manufacturing  (+7,600 jobs, up 2.8 percent)
  •         o Health Care and Social Assistance (+10,800 jobs, up 2.6 percent)
  •         o Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (+4,200 jobs, up 2.6 percent)

 

Missouri sees growth in annual average wages

  • • Missouri has seen wage growth every year for the past four years.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Missouri's annual average wage growth over time. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.​

  • • Missouri’s statewide annual average wage reached an all-time high of $49,050 in 2018, a 3.6 percent increase over 2017
  •   and a 10.6 percent increase over 2014. 
  • • Several Missouri counties saw particularly high average wage increases in 2018: 
  •         o Newton County, home to Neosho and metro Joplin (+13.7 percent)
  •         o St. Louis County (+5.2 percent) and St. Louis City (+4.2 percent)
  •         o Webster County, home to Marshfield and metro Springfield (+4.4 percent)
  • • 74 percent of Missouri’s 114 counties had an annual average wage increase of more than 2 percent in 2018. Only three
  •   counties have seen wage decreases since 2014.
  • • St. Louis City and County each had an annual average wage of over $60,500 in 2018. Jackson County, home to Kansas
  •   City and Independence, reached an annual average wage of $56,500.

 

The figures above are drawn from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), a cooperative program between the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Missouri Department of Economic Development. A full breakdown of QCEW data can be found here. 

Recent Business Announcements in Missouri:

 

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