St. Mary jobless rate up in June

St. Mary Parish’s unemployment rate jumped nearly a point in June despite an increase in total employment.
Figures from the Louisiana Workforce Commission say the June jobless rate here was 5.3%, up from 4.4% in May and from 4.8% in June 2023. The numbers are not seasonally adjusted.
The jump in the unemployment rate came despite an increase in the number of nonfarm employed here to 18,015 from 17,705 in June. Employment in May 2023 stood at 18,200.
The number of unemployed people — people without jobs who are actively seeking them — grew even faster, from 806 in May to 1,006 in June.
In Assumption, the unemployment rate rose to 4.7% from 4.0% month over month despite an increase in employment from 8,350 to 8,466.
The number of unemployed in Assumption was 421 in June compared to 346 in May.
Statewide, unemployment was at 4.0% in June. The state gained 2,600 jobs from May to June, 2,300 of them in the private sector.
The largest gains were in private education and health services, which added 900 jobs month over month, and the catch-all “other services” category, which added 1,400 jobs.
The biggest losses were in leisure and hospitality, which dropped 1,000 jobs in the month, and financial activities, which lost 900 jobs.
Among locally important industries, support activities for mining and logging, which includes many oilfield service employers, grew by 700 jobs statewide from May to June.
Ship and boat building stayed steady at 5,100 employed.