Statewide Jobless Rate 4.5% In September

October 15, 1999
No. 00-17

Alaska's statewide unemployment rate moved slightly downward in September, falling one-tenth of a percentage point to 4.5%. This September's rate was the lowest rate ever recorded for the month of September and was the second-lowest rate recorded for any month since 1978. The all-time record low was posted in August 1998 when the unemployment rate was 4.3%. John Boucher, a labor economist with the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, reported the drop.

The 4.5% rate meant that more than 14,300 Alaskans were unemployed in September, nearly 80 fewer than in August. September's rate was the first time since January that the statewide unemployment rate was below the rate of a year ago. Last September the unemployment rate in Alaska was 4.6%. The comparable national unemployment rate (U.S. civilian not seasonally adjusted) in September was 4.1%.

The September drop in the unemployment rate was somewhat unexpected. "During the last twenty years, the unemployment rate has declined from August to September only four times, so this year's drop is unusual, but not unprecedented," Boucher said. The last time Alaska's unemployment rate dropped from August to September was in 1993.

One reason for the drop was the beginning of the new school year. "Unemployment can drop in September when unemployed young people drop out of the labor force to go back to school. In addition, a large contingent of school support staff returned to work in September," Boucher said. "Most often though, the school-related downward pressure on unemployment is offset by work ending in other seasonal industries like seafood processing and construction."

The highest unemployment rate in Alaska in September was posted in the Northwest Arctic Borough at 12.5%, while the lowest rate was the Aleutians East Borough rate of 1.5%.

Wage and salary employment statistics showed that state and local governments were the only sectors to post job gains in September, and all of those employment gains were education-related. Most other sectors of the economy experienced job losses in September. The manufacturing sector in Alaska's coastal regions experienced the greatest job losses as seafood processors let go of employees following the peak salmon processing season.

Labor Force by Region and Census Area

Benchmark: March 1998

P/ denotes preliminary estimates

R/ denotes revised estimates

Comparisons between different time periods are not as meaningful as other time series produced by Research & Analysis.

The official definition of unemployment currently in place excludes anyone who has not made an active attempt to find work in the four-week period up to and including the week that includes the 12th of the reference month. Due to the scarcity of employment opportunities in rural Alaskan locations, many individuals do not meet the official definition of unemployed because they have not conducted an active job search. These individuals are considered not in the labor force.

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

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