Jobless rates in area take a dip in April

The statewide unemployment rate and the jobless rates for St. Mary’s neighboring metro areas were all down in April from their March figures, according to the Louisiana Workforce Commission.
Parish-by-parish employment data is typically released early in the month after state and metro numbers are posted.
The Louisiana unemployment rate for April — not seasonally adjusted — was 3.4%, down from 4.5% in March, but higher than the 3.0% figure in April 2023.
Louisiana gained 12,300 jobs between March and April, bringing total nonfarm employment to 1,968,900. That’s 11,700 more than in April 2023.
About 5,100 of the 12,300 new jobs came in the New Orleans metro area, according to the Workforce Commission, where April unemployment was at 3.5%, down a full point from April. But New Orleans is down 3,600 jobs from April 2023.
In this region, the Houma-Thibodaux statistical area gained 300 jobs in April, when unemployment dropped a full point to 3.0%. Houma has gained 1,500 jobs since April 2023, and employment now stands at 85,900.
The Lafayette metro area gained 1,400 jobs last month as the jobless rate dipped a point to 3.3%.
The unemployment rate was down 0.9-1.1 points in all nine metro areas.