Ariz. Construction Lost 2,500 Jobs in January

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX
Arizona’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained at 4.5 percent in January 2020, from December 2019, according to the latest report published by the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity.
The national rate increased to 3.6 percent from 3.5 percent in December. In January 2019, the state had a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.8 percent, and the national was at 4.0 percent.
The state had a net loss of 47,300 non-farm jobs over the month, which is less than the historical 10-year (2010-2019) average loss of 51,000 jobs. Trade, Transportation & Utilities had the largest net loss of jobs with 18,100, followed by Professional & Business Services with 9,000. Of the 11 sectors tracked, Natural Resources & Mining was the only sector with no jobs lost for the month.
Education and Health Services in Arizona took the top spot in job gains from January 2019 to January 2020 with a total of 21,800, while Professional & Business Services came in second with 13,100. Construction came in third with 8,300.
The Construction sector features three major segments: Buildings, Heavy, and Specialty Trades. There are currently 36,200 jobs in Buildings, which increased by 200 from December 2019 and increased 3,000 from January 2019. Heavy Construction lost 500 over the month for a total of 20,700 and is up 1,500 from January 2018. Specialty Trades decreased 2,200 for the month at 114,800, and the segment added 3,800 over the year.
Construction jobs in the Phoenix Metro Area (Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale) decreased 300 over the month for a total of 135,400. The January 2019 number was 128,600.
The Metro Tucson construction jobs lost 400 from December for a total of 17,900 and increased by 600 from January 2019.
Yuma, Flagstaff, Prescott, Lake Havasu City-Kingman and Sierra Vista-Douglas combine Construction and Natural Resources jobs in reporting their job sector totals. Yuma lost 100 for a total of 3,000 for the month. Flagstaff lost 300 for a total of 2,300. Prescott and Lake Havasu City-Kingman lost 200 for a total of 6,100 and 3,300 respectively for the month. Sierra Vista-Douglas remained at 1,900.