Next week we will see revised data for Arkansas payroll employment.  Meanwhile, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has already released new, revised data for household employment and unemployment–including the unemployment rate.  This revision is more substantial than the routine annual re-estimation process, representing the implementation of a “new generation of time-series models.”  For Arkansas, the data revisions smooth out some of the puzzling fluctuations in employment and labor force over the past couple of years, while maintaining some of the overall trends that were apparent in the previously published data.

The chart below shows the effect of the revisions on the Arkansas unemployment rate.  As previously estimated and published, the unemployment rate reached 7.9% during the 2008-09 recession, peaking at 8.1% in 2011.  The revised data show higher rates of unemployment during the recession and its aftermath, with a peak rate of 8.4% in early 2011.  The revised data show a somewhat smoother path of recovery from 2011 through 2014, but both series show and end-of-year unemployment rate of 5.7%.

The revisions to the unemployment rate are based on revised estimates of employment, unemployment, and labor force.  Over the past few months, the employment and labor force statistics have shown unusually large and somewhat inexplicable fluctuations.  As shown in the next set of charts, much of that volatility was revised away.  What remains is a gradual decline in employment running from the end of 2011 through late 2013, followed by a period of recovery during 2014.  The nearly two-year decline in employment totaled nearly 50,000 workers, with the subsequent recovery adding back about 30,000 by the end of 2014.  A similar pattern of revisions affect the labor force estimates.  On the number of unemployed, the revised data show more unemployed workers than previously estimated in 2010 and 2011, but with a larger and more persistent decline in 2013 and 2014.

Before the revision, the data were showing that Arkansas’ unemployment rate moved above the U.S. average during 2013 and remained persistently higher throughout 2014 (see here, for example).  With the more monotonic downward path for unemployment in the revised statistics, Arkansas’ rate has more closely tracked the national average.  As of December 2014, the unemployment rate for Arkansas was 5.7% — one tenth of a percentage higher than the national rate.

The latest monthly report on state employment and unemployment adds to recent evidence of a dramatic improvement in labor market conditions in Arkansas.   The headline statistic showed that the unemployment rate dropped 3-tenths of a percent from 6.1% in October (revised) to 5.8% in November.  With that decline, the unemployment rate in Arkansas is now equal to the national unemployment rate.

The underlying details of household employment all pointed to improving conditions:  The number of unemployed Arkansans declined by nearly 2,200, following a decline of 1,900 in October.  The number of employed increased by 10,300 — the largest monthly increase on record (breaking the record increase of 9,400 for October).   As a result, the labor force has expanded dramatically over the past two months, erasing a large portion of the decline from earlier in the year.  In fact, this is the third consecutive month of strong gains in household employment and labor force participation.

Payroll Employment
The survey of employers also showed strong job growth in November.  Overall nonfarm payroll employment increased by 7,600 (seasonally adjusted).  As shown in the table below, increases were present in nearly all sectors of the economy (with the exception of Information Services, a relatively small sector).  Gains were particularly prominent in good-producing sectors:  Manufacturing employment was up 1,300 and Construction employment gained 1,400.  Gains in seasonally-adjusted Wholesale and Retail trade indicate that seasonal hiring for the holiday season are larger that would typically be expected.

Since the employment low-point of February 2010, total employment has increased by over 51,000 and now stands at only 5,700 less than pre-recession levels.  As noted previously, the annual benchmark revisions that will be released next year are likely to show a downward adjustment to the data.  After the expected revision, cumulative employment gains since February 2010 are expected to be approximately 41,800, still 15,200 below the pre-recession level.

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*Seasonally adjusted data for Arkansas nonfarm payroll employment, reported in a format compatible with the monthly news release from the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services, can be found here:  Table-Seasonally Adjusted NFPE.

The latest report on employment and unemployment in Arkansas shows the unemployment rate dropping two-tenths of a percent to 6.0% in October, the lowest level since July 2008.  More importantly, the underlying components of the unemployment rate are moving in a positive direction.  Earlier in the year, a falling unemployment rate was accompanied by a sharply contracting labor force.  The data for October shows a decline in the number of unemployed (-1,994), an increase in employment (+9,430), and an expanding labor force (+7,436).  The increase in labor force participation continues an uptrend that emerged in the September data.

Payroll Survey
Data collected from the state’s employers shows a small monthly increase in employment in October.  Nonfarm payroll employment expanded by 800 in October, and is up 14,200 from the previous year (seasonally adjusted).  Notable monthly increases were reported for Manufacturing, Transportation & Utilities, and Education & Health Services.  Employment in Wholesale and Retail trade contracted from September to October.

Since the employment trough of 2010, the official data show an increase in payroll employment of 44,700, still 12,300 lower than before the 2008-09 recession.  As we reported last month, however, the payroll data for late 2013 are likely to be revised down by approximately 9,400 jobs when the annual benchmark revisions are released in early 2015.  Taking into account these expected revisions, Arkansas payroll employment has increased by approximately 35,300 since February 2010, and remains 21,700 below the level recorded in December 2007.

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*Seasonally adjusted data for Arkansas nonfarm payroll employment, reported in a format compatible with the monthly news release from the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services, can be found here:  Table-Seasonally Adjusted NFPE.

The Arkansas unemployment rate was 6.2% in July, down slightly from a revised 6.3% rate in June.  Unemployment rates for Arkansas and the U.S. have once again converged — the national unemployment rate was also 6.2% in July.

Looking in more detail at the components of the unemployment rate, the number of unemployed was down in July for the 11th consecutive month (-626), but it was the smallest decline since last September.  The number of employed continued the sharp downward trend that has prevailed since April.  In July, the number of employed declined by 7,166, bringing the four month cumulative total to -21,632.  With both the number of employed and unemployed falling, the labor force was down by nearly 8,000 in July, and has dropped by over 32,000 over the past four months.

Payroll Data
The survey of employers showed an increase in Arkansas nonfarm payroll employment in July.  Compared to the previous month, employment was up 2,200 (seasonally adjusted).  [The not-seasonally adjusted data highlighted by the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services showed a sharp decline, but all of those losses were attributable to the summer closure of public schools and universities.]  As shown in the table below, several sectors showed small employment declines in July, but these were offset by gains in Retail Trade, Other services and Government.

The seasonally adjusted data show a year-over-year increase of 15,200 jobs, with gains in every sector except Information Services.  However, most of those increases took place in the second part of 2013.  Total nonfarm payroll employment has declined, on net, by 1,100 jobs since January of this year.  Payroll employment remains 18,700 below the level that prevailed just before the onset of the 2008-09 recession.

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*Seasonally adjusted data for Arkansas nonfarm payroll employment, reported in a format compatible with the monthly news release from the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services, can be found here:  Table-Seasonally Adjusted NFPE.

The unemployment rate in Arkansas dropped two-tenths of a percentage point in June, falling to 6.2%.  The change matches a similar decline in the U.S. unemployment rate, which stood at 6.1% in June.  The underlying data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Arkansas Department of Workforce Services showed a 10th consecutive monthly decline in the number of unemployed — down nearly 2,600 to approximately 81,600.  As recently as October of last year, the number of unemployed Arkansans remained above 100,000.  Over the past 12 months, the number of unemployed has fallen by over 19,000.

However, the other component of the unemployment rate, the number of employed, continues to be a source of concern.  The household-survey measure of employment fell by 6,700 in June, bringing the cumulative 3-month decline to nearly 14,500.   As a result of these changes, the labor force fell by 9,300 for the month, and has fallen by more than 24,600 over the past three months.

Recent data demonstrate that a decline in the unemployment rate cannot always be interpreted positively.  If, in fact, the decline in the number of unemployed reflects discouraged workers dropping out of the labor force, then the falling unemployment rate might be a misleading signal.  For example, suppose that the decline in unemployment over the past three months was entirely attributable to the discouraged-worker effect:  If we assumed that those 10,234 Arkansans remain unemployed in a true sense of the word, then the measured unemployment rate in June might be more appropriately calculated as 7.0%.   The sweeping assumption that unemployed workers are giving up on their job searches is surely an exaggeration, and the data are subject to future revision.  But as it stands now, the sharp contraction of the Arkansas labor force that we’ve seen over the past three months is a cause for concern.

Payroll Employment
Data from the survey of employers reinforces concern about weak employment growth.  Nonfarm payrolls were down 3,300 in June (seasonally adjusted).  Payroll employment remains more than 14,000 higher than a year ago, but most of those gains occurred during the latter part of 2013.  Over the first 6 months of this year, employment has increased by only 1,700.

As shown in the table below, employment declines hit every category of service-providing sectors.  The largest declines were in Professional & Business Services and Education & Health Services — two areas that have previously been showing strong growth trends.  The news was more positive in the goods-producing sectors.  Manufacturing employment surged by 1,700, and employment in Construction increased as well.  Despite recent gains, employment in both Manufacturing and Construction remain lower than they were at labor market trough in February 2010, and together those two employment categories account for cumulative job losses of over 41,000 since the start of the 2008-09 recession.

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*Seasonally adjusted data for Arkansas nonfarm payroll employment, reported in a format compatible with the monthly news release from the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services, can be found here:  Table-Seasonally Adjusted NFPE.

The Arkansas unemployment rate declined another two-tenths of a percent in May, falling to 6.4%.  The unemployment rate has fallen for eight consecutive months, and is now 1.1% lower than it was in May of 2013.  The Arkansas rate has been declining along with the national unemployment rate, which stood at 6.3% in May. 

For the second consecutive month, however, the unemployment rate drop was accompanied by a sharp decline in the labor force.  The number of unemployed dropped by 2,637 in May, and was down 7,649 since March.  But we have not been seeing a commensurate increase in the number of  employed Arkansans.  Rather, the number of employed has declined by 7,776 over the past two months.  As a result, the labor force declined by 15,425 during April and May.  The declining labor force is something of a puzzle.  With labor market trends appearing to be on an improving trend, we would expect to see discouraged job-seekers re-enter the labor force, boosting participation rates and unemployment rates.  Instead, we’re seeing the reverse.  It might be the case that some job-seekers are leaving the labor force out of frustration, but it might also be the case that job seekers are leaving the Arkansas labor force in favor of finding jobs elsewhere.  The declining labor force might also reflect a cohort of newly retired baby-boomers dropping out of active labor force participation.  Two months is not long enough to establish a trend, but this development is worthy of monitoring closely over the next few months.

Payroll Employment
The separate survey of employers showed nonfarm payroll employment down by 400 in May (seasonally adjusted).  Sectors losing jobs in May included Construction, Manufacturing, and Retail Trade.  Employment was down in most service sectors as well.  A notable exception was Education and Health services, which increased by 2,500 jobs.  Over a longer span of time, payroll employment is maintaining a respectable growth rate.  Since May 2013, total employment is up by over 14,000 jobs, and we’ve seen the creation of nearly 39,000 jobs since the trough of February 2010.  Nevertheless, Arkansas employment remains more that 18,000 jobs lower than it was before the recession began in December 2007.

Considering the employment gains of the past 12 months, there are two distinct subperiods.  During the latter part of 2013 we saw significant job growth, with an increase of nearly 15,000 jobs in the period from May 2013 through January 2014.  So far this year, however, job growth has stalled.  From January through May 2014, total payroll employment has declined slightly.  Some of the slowdown is likely associated with harsh winter weather that we experienced in the first part of the calendar year.  More recent weakness in payroll employment growth parallels the reversal of employment gains that we’ve seen in the household survey.

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*Seasonally adjusted data for Arkansas nonfarm payroll employment, reported in a format compatible with the monthly news release from the Arkansas Department of Workforce Services, can be found here:  Table-Seasonally Adjusted NFPE.