The Tri-Parish workforce took a rare dip in May by posting a loss of 535 jobs compared to the May 2023 count, according to date released Tuesday by the Louisiana Workforce Commission.
The workforce in May totaled 67,710, down 0.8% for the May 2023 total of 68,245.
The Tri-Parish workforce counts for May are:
St. Landry, 31,597, down 469 or 1.5% from May 2023;
— Evangeline, 12,443, up 100 or 0.8% from the May 2023 count; and
Acadia, 23,670, down 166 or 0.7% from the May 2023 count.
Unemployment rates in May are:
— St. Landry, 4.4%, down from 4.5% in May 2023 and up from 4.1% in April;
— Evangeline, 4%, up from 3.8% in May 2023 and up from 3.6% in April; and
— Acadia, 3.8%, up from 3.7% in May 2023 and up up from 3.6% in April.
The data is not seasonally adjusted for factors such as weather and holidays.
Louisiana’s not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for May is 3.6%. The rate shows an increase of 0.2 percentage points from the revised April rate of 3.4% and no change from the May 2023 figure.
Since April, the number of not seasonally adjusted employed individuals has decreased by 29,400 to 1,982,676 in May. Compared to May 2023, the number of not seasonally adjusted employed individuals decreased by 18,552.
Since April, the number of not seasonally adjusted unemployed individuals has increased by 2,532 to 74,049 in May. Compared to May 2023, the number of not seasonally adjusted unemployed individuals has decreased by 1,389.
Not seasonally adjusted May unemployment rates for Louisiana and its nine Metropolitan Statistical Areas are as follows:
Alexandria – 3.4%, unchanged from May 2023;
Baton Rouge – 3.2%, unchanged from May 2023;
Hammond – 4.2%, down from 4.3% in May 2023;
Houma – 3.2%, unchanged from May 2023;
Lafayette – 3.4%, unchanged from May 2023;
Lake Charles – 3.3%, down from 3.4% in May 2023;
Monroe – 3.9%, unchanged from May 2023;
New Orleans – 3.6%, down from 3.7% in May 2023; and
Shreveport – 3.8% unchanged from May 2023.
