TOPEKA — Kansas’ 2.9% unemployment figure in November — identical to November 2022 — mirrored stability in joblessness reports emerging from 38 states, state and federal officials said.
The Kansas Department of Labor said preliminary calculations showed the percentage of the state’s workforce without a job was unchanged from October.
“The Kansas unemployment rate remains near historic lows at 2.9% as the state’s labor market remains tight,” said Nathan Kessler, an economist at the state Department of Labor. “The unemployment rate has been very stable and was unchanged from last month and from November 2022.”
The static rate of unemployment in Kansas masked growth of 2,100 private-sector jobs and 600 new government jobs during the month. Since November 2022, Kansas has documented expansion of 6,600 private-sector jobs and the addition of 7,700 government jobs.
State labor officials said Kansas employed 1.47 million people and had 43,700 looking unsuccessfully for a job in November. The workforce in Kansas of 1.51 million has grown by 13,000 since November 2022 while the number employed grew by 14,200 over the year.
The monthly jobless reports leveled off in Kansas after recovering from the surge to 12.6% at outset of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020.
The national unemployment rate edged down to 3.7% in November with Maryland with the lowest posting of 1.8% and Nevada with the highest rate at 5.4%. Nineteen states, including Kansas, had unemployment figures in November below the 3.7% national average.
