By Roland Murphy for AZBEX
Arizona’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 4.3% in November, up from 4.2% for the month of October, according to the latest report published by the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity.
The national unemployment rate decreased to 3.7%, down from 3.9% in October. Last November, Arizona had a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.0%, while the national rate was 3.6%.
The Construction sector added 3,300 jobs around the state last month.
Arizona had a gain of 35,900 jobs in nonfarm employment in November. “Prior to the pandemic (2010-2019), NSA nonfarm employment gained 28,800 jobs on average in November,” the report states.
The private sector gained 35,400 jobs over the month, led by Trade, Transportation & Utilities adding 16,600 and Professional & Business Services adding 9,100. Government gained 500.
Ten of the 11 sectors tracked reported gains in November. The only sector to lose jobs was Other Services, which dropped 100. Year-over-year, eight of the 11 sectors reported gains, including Construction’s addition of 6,900 jobs.
Construction Employment
Statewide construction employment totals 205,400 jobs. In November 2022, the sector reported 198,500.
The Arizona Construction sector features three major segments: Buildings, Heavy, and Specialty Trades. There are currently 45,800 jobs in Buildings, which is up 400 from October and up 3,300 from November 2022. Heavy Construction added 600 for the month, for a total of 24,000, and added 1,200 over the year. Specialty Trades added 2,300 over the month for a total of 135,600, and the segment gained 2,400 year-over-year.
Construction jobs in the Phoenix Metro Area (Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale) added 2,500 over the month for a total of 164,000. The November 2022 number was 156,700. Metro Tucson added 200 construction jobs over the month at 20,400, which is an increase of 600 year-over-year.
Yuma, Flagstaff, Prescott, Lake Havasu City-Kingman and Sierra Vista-Douglas combine Mining and Construction jobs in reporting their job sector totals. Yuma, Prescott, Lake Havasu City-Kingman were unchanged over the month, with 4,200, 7,200 and 4,300 construction jobs reported, respectively. Flagstaff added 100 jobs for a total of 3,100, as did Sierra Vista-Douglas at 2,100.