The state’s jobless rate remained stagnant at 3.7% for the 10th consecutive month during May even with a sizable decline in the overall workforce, the N.C. Commerce Department reported.
In the monthly employer survey there was a net gain of 100 private sector jobs from April, as well as 300 government jobs.
Leading the way in hiring was 1,600 in construction, along with 1,300 in trade, transportation and utilities.
Those gains were offset by a 2,220 loss in professional and business services.
“Hiring is clearly slowing as businesses navigate the uncertainty surrounding tariffs,†said Mark Vitner, chief economist with Piedmont Crescent Capital.
Vitner said that recent employment gains have been increasingly concentrated in healthcare, local government, and leisure and hospitality — sectors where jobs require physical presence and have been among the most difficult to refill since the pandemic.â€
Over the past year, the state has had a net gain of 54,600 private-sector and 13,300 government jobs.
Listen now and subscribe: | | | | | |
Topping the private sector is 18,100 jobs in private education and health services, 15,500 in professional and business services, 13,200 in trade, transportation and utilities, 7,900 in construction and 4,800 in other services.
There also was a loss of 5,400 jobs in manufacturing.
Meanwhile, there was an overall 5,353 decrease in the labor force from April, representing 5,637 fewer employed North Carolinians and 284 more listed as newly unemployed and looking for work.
Taking a year-over-year look, the state’s labor force is up 0.1%, or by 2,289. That represents a loss of 4,394 individuals listed as employed and an increase of 6,683 of those considered unemployed and looking for work.
People who are not actively looking for work are not counted toward the unemployment rate.
“The report suggests the North Carolina economy is still healthy, but economic growth is slowing,†said Michael Walden, a retired economics professor at N.C. State University.
“The major cause is tariffs and the threat of higher tariffs. The next three to four months will be critical for the Trump administration to negotiate tariff deals with trading partners and avert the imposition of high tariffs.
“If high tariffs are imposed, we could have the worst of all economies — stagflation, which means higher inflation along with a stalled or contracting economy.â€
