GSI Analysis: November ’24 Jobs Report – New Jersey Unemployment Edges Down, Jobs Gain Slightly in November

• 4.6% unemployment rate lowest since June, but reflects drop in the labor force.
• 3,100 job gain in November accompanied by an upward revision to October.

On December 19th, New Jersey’s Department of Labor and Workforce Development issued the Monthly Jobs Report for November 2024. Dr. Charles Steindel, former Chief Economist of the State of New Jersey, analyzed the report for the Garden State Initiative:

New Jersey’s job numbers were relatively little-changed in November. The state’s unemployment rate did fall to 4.6%, down from 4.7% in October. The last time the rate was 4.6% was in June. However, November’s unemployment decline was due to a 5,900 drop in the state’s labor force, which more than offset a loss of 3,400 in the count of state residents at work. The labor force has now dropped for three straight months, after some steady gains in the middle of the year. The state’s unemployment rate in November was .4 percentage points higher than the national average, which is the smallest gap since July. In general, New Jersey’s unemployment rate has been stable this year, while the national rate has drifted up.

The job numbers were somewhat better. There was a modest increase of 3,100 in the number of jobs, and October’s numbers now show no change, compared to the initial estimate of a 1,500 loss. Industry developments were rather disparate. Construction picked up 1,400 jobs, education and health services gained 5,700, and leisure and hospitality rose by 2,000. On the other side, though, trade, transportation, and utilities were down 3,500, and professional and business services were off by 2,800. The slack number in trade, transportation, and utilities could reflect cautious and delayed seasonal hiring (the unusually late date for Thanksgiving may have played a role here).

Elsewhere, New York reported a somewhat stronger increase in jobs in November (along with an upward revision to October), and an unchanged 4.4% unemployment rate (also with a drop in the state’s labor force).