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BALTIMORE, MD (June 28, 2007) – Maryland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate held
steady at 3.6 percent for the third consecutive month, making May’s rate the lowest for
the month since 2000 according to Maryland’s Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.
Maryland’s rate, the 13th lowest in a ranking of states across the nation, was nearly a
full percentage point below the national rate which held steady at 4.5 percent
over-the-month.
Since last May, the number of unemployed Marylanders has declined by nearly 8,000
persons, causing the unemployment rate to fall from its year ago level of 3.9 percent.
According to Maryland’s business activity report, employers added 3,400 jobs to their
payrolls during May, with gains in the public sector and education and health services
leading the monthly expansion. The statewide economy has expanded by 27,600 jobs over
the past twelve months, with job creation in professional and business services and
education and health collectively accounting for nearly 6 out of every 10 new jobs.
At the local level, non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rates either declined or
held steady in seventeen of the state’s twenty-four jurisdictions over-the-month. Ten
jurisdictions reported unemployment rates at or below the 3.0 percent level during May,
with rates the lowest, at 2.6 percent and 2.7 percent, respectively, in Howard and
Montgomery counties. Seasonal economics helped to noticeably improve the labor market
status of jobseekers residing in the Shore Area as employers began to hire additional
help to accommodate the increased activity generated by the seafood and tourism industry.
Worcester County’s rate, dropping from 6.3 percent to 4.7 percent, showed the largest
downward movement over-the-month.
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