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Alaska Unemployment Drops to 6.1% in May

Jun. 16, 2000
No. 00-55

May Unemployment for selected areasRegionally, unemployment was mixed. Four of the state's six regions showed unemployment drops, while the Northern Region and Southwest Alaska posted higher unemployment rates. "The beginning of the peak visitor season and a vigorous construction industry brightened the state's unemployment picture," Boucher commented. "Most of urban Alaska geared up for the tourism season and another solid construction season."

The Kodiak Island Borough, Southwestern Alaska and Northern Alaska were exceptions to the trend of dropping unemployment rates. A slowdown in employment related to the winter fisheries caused higher unemployment in Kodiak and Southwest Alaska. The end of the winter oil drilling and construction season was a major cause of increased unemployment in Northern Alaska. The highest unemployment rate in Alaska was in the Wade Hampton Census Area at 21.0%, while the lowest was in the Aleutians East Borough at 4.0%.

Wage and salary employment statistics helped explain the sharp drop in the unemployment rate. There were 11,000 more wage and salary jobs available in the state than in April. Retail trade, tourist-related services, construction and the transportation industry contributed most of the job growth. Manufacturing employment losses were restricted to Southwestern Alaska and Kodiak, where seafood processing plants geared down after the winter fisheries. Federal government employment gains related to temporary workers hired for the 2000 Census accounted for most of the government employment gains seen from April to May.

Labor Force By Region and Census Area

Labor Force

 

Unemployment

 

Rate

   

Employment

 
May-00 Apr-00 May-99 May-00 Apr-00 May-99 May-00 Apr-00 May-99 May-00 Apr-00 May-99
Alaska Statewide 320,776 314,797 314,244 19,604 20,883 21,166 6.1 6.6 6.7 301,172 293,914 293,078
Anchorage
/Mat-Su Region
173,715 172,407 168,498 8,484 9,129 9,107 4.9 5.3 5.4 165,231 163,278 159,391
Municipality of Anchorage 142,497 141,936 139,186 6,207 6,586 6,578 4.4 4.6 4.7 136,290 135,350 132,608
Mat-Su Borough 31,218 30,471 29,312 2,277 2,543 2,529 7.3 8.3 8.6 28,941 27,928 26,783
Gulf Coast Region 33,787 32,412 34,018 2,908 3,222 3,691 8.6 9.9 10.9 30,879 29,190 30,327
Kenai Peninsula Borough 21,460 20,836 21,466 1,873 2,321 2,229 8.7 11.1 10.4 19,587 18,515 19,237
Kodiak Island Borough 7,180 6,614 7,483 633 425 1,053 8.8 6.4 14.1 6,547 6,189 6,430
Valdez-Cordova 5,147 4,961 5,069 402 475 409 7.8 9.6 8.1 4,745 4,486 4,660
Interior Region 51,122 48,789 50,056 3,248 3,469 3,347 6.4 7.1 6.7 47,874 45,320 46,709
Denali Borough 1,215 1,206 1,196 71 123 80 5.8 10.2 6.7 1,144 1,083 1,116
Fairbanks North Star Borough 45,106 42,998 44,209 2,539 2,702 2,678 5.6 6.3 6.1 42,567 40,296 41,531
Southeast Fairbanks 2,607 2,509 2,516 257 285 223 9.9 11.4 8.9 2,350 2,224 2,293
Yukon-Koyukuk 2,194 2,075 2,134 381 359 365 17.4 17.3 17.1 1,813 1,716 1,769
Northern Region 8,527 8,657 8,234 1,026 934 998 12 10.8 12.1 7,501 7,723 7,236
Nome 3,264 3,300 3,146 444 396 426 13.6 12 13.5 2,820 2,904 2,720
North Slope Borough 3,190 3,242 3,055 293 259 260 9.2 8 8.5 2,897 2,983 2,795
Northwest Arctic
Borough
2,073 2,116 2,033 289 279 312 13.9 13.2 15.3 1,784 1,837 1,721
Southeast Region 39,677 37,867 39,530 2,313 2,678 2,548 5.8 7.1 6.4 37,364 35,189 36,982
Haines Borough 1,176 1,167 1,219 80 135 134 6.8 11.6 11 1,096 1,032 1,085
Juneau Borough 17,249 16,298 17,132 721 732 773 4.2 4.5 4.5 16,528 15,566 16,359
Ketchikan Gateway Borough 7,296 7,034 7,246 470 605 490 6.4 8.6 6.8 6,826 6,429 6,756
Pr. of Wales-Outer Ketchikan 3,380 3,250 3,408 412 455 470 12.2 14 13.8 2,968 2,795 2,938
Sitka Borough 4,430 4,188 4,423 201 205 237 4.5 4.9 5.4 4,229 3,983 4,186
Skagway
-Hoonah-Angoon
2,255 2,170 2,237 111 151 115 4.9 7 5.1 2,144 2,019 2,122
Wrangell-Petersburg 3,557 3,444 3,536 275 353 288 7.7 10.2 8.1 3,282 3,091 3,248
Yakutat Borough 335 315 328 44 41 40 13.1 13 12.2 291 274 288
Southwest Region 13,948 14,665 13,908 1,625 1,451 1,475 11.7 9.9 10.6 12,323 13,214 12,433
Aleutians East
Borough
1,448 1,532 1,482 58 41 79 4 2.7 5.3 1,390 1,491 1,403
Aleutians West 1,841 1,919 1,834 159 115 137 8.6 6 7.5 1,682 1,804 1,697
Bethel 5,786 6,067 5,764 683 596 616 11.8 9.8 10.7 5,103 5,471 5,148
Bristol Bay Borough 567 629 558 47 71 33 8.3 11.3 5.9 520 558 525
Dillingham 1,669 1,776 1,668 177 176 162 10.6 9.9 9.7 1,492 1,600 1,506
Lake & Peninsula
Borough
554 586 544 63 60 49 11.4 10.2 9 491 526 495
Wade Hampton 2,082 2,156 2,059 438 393 400 21 18.2 19.4 1,644 1,763 1,659

Alaska Nonagricultural Wage & Salary Employment

preliminary revised

Changes from:

May-00 Apr-00 May-99 Apr-00 May-99
Total Nonagricultural Employment 286,600 275,600 281,600 11,000 5,000
Mining 9,800 9,700 9,700 100 100
Construction 14,300 12,500 13,800 1,800 500
Manufacturing 12,200 12,900 12,900 -700 -700
Transportation, Commun. & Utilities 27,800 25,700 26,600 2,100 1,200
Trade 58,300 55,600 57,800 2,700 500
Finance, Insurance & Real Estate 12,800 12,700 12,800 100 0
Services & Misc. 73,700 70,300 71,600 3,400 2,100
Government 77,700 76,200 76,400 1,500 1,300

Government includes employees of public schools and the University of Alaska.
Benchmark date: March 1998

Source: Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Research and Analysis Section.

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