Delaware’s unemployment rate held steady at 4.7 in July as more people entered the labor force, the Delaware Department of Labor reported.
By contrast, the jobless rate in July of last year was 5.8 percent. The nation’s unemployment rate was 5.3 percent.
In the closely watched area of employment growth, Delaware saw 2 percent growth, slightly below the national figure of 2.1 percent.
Earlier the state had seen one of the fastest rates of growth among the 50 states over shorter intervals. However, the rate of growth has slowed down.
The number of persons employed has increased about 1,300 every month this year. The number of unemployed fell in the first four months of the year, with the figure rising in the following three months.
The weakest sectors continued to be manufacturing and wholesale/retail trade. Manufacturing is down about 100 jobs from a year ago, with wholesale and retail trade showing a loss of 1,100 jobs, according to state figures.
Growth is coming in professional and business services, up 2,300 over the past year and leisure and hospitality, up 3,100. Other categories, including financial services, construction, and education and health saw gains of about 1,000 jobs each.
The sector was hit again with news that DuPont spin-off Chemours will close its Edgemoor plant near Wilmington, resulting in the loss of 200 jobs.
In recent months, the monthly labor report has included more commentary on workforce trends.
The July report looked at discouraged workers who are unemployed but are no longer looking for work. Discouraged workers are not counted in unemployment figures, but are tracked by other means, the department reported.
The labor department reported the number of discouraged workers in Delaware dropped from 3,300 a year ago to 2,100 at present.
Another measurement of the total workforce indicates that nearly 15,000 says they want a job, but are not looking. That is down from 17,700 a year ago.
